


In Dreams

by xxMad_Donaxx



Series: Dreams [1]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Crossdressing, Double Anal Penetration, Dream Sex, Grief/Mourning, M/M, Threesome - M/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-06-08
Packaged: 2018-03-31 16:01:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 31,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3984151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xxMad_Donaxx/pseuds/xxMad_Donaxx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anders, Alistair and Cullen are three men with many fears and problems. A Fade Spirit attempts to help each of them in their dreams, changing all of them in the process.</p><p>Different races and magic are intact.</p><p> </p><p>  <strong>*Check out Chapter 9. Alistair and Cullen as promised.</strong></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prolouge

**Author's Note:**

> This Fade Spirit's nature is ambiguous on purpose. Her intentions aren't malicious but you know what they say about the road to hell.

She watched the three men unseen from a corner. Three sets of broad shoulders, two muscular and the third lean but strong. They sat on the floor, pillowed and fluffy like clouds given substance. Long limbs were entwined around each other, all three joined together where their legs met their torsos. Three heads covered in various shades of blonde hair, close together as lips sought out the skin of neck and jaw. Strong hands ran down sides to slender hips as long delicate fingers clutched desperately at the strong shoulders in front of him.

Their movements were subtle and sensuous. A gentle rise followed by a slow decent, the smallest frame between the larger two. He was stretched taut around them, able to take their considerable girths by the thinnest of margins. She sensed his pain but it was a smaller part of his overall pleasure. He wanted to be pulled thin, to feel the burning stretch and the almost too full feeling they gave him.

One behind and one in front, their lips met each other’s as often as they sucked delicate bruises on the slender man between them. They were pressed together inside as well as out both careful as they lifted him almost off of them and let him sink back down slowly. The darkest haired one had been skeptical of such pleasure when she’d first brought him here. Nervous and shy had quickly turned bold and confident.

The tallest and broadest was always the most gentle. He soothed afterwards before she sent them back to their separate lives. Soft encouragement and praise for his two lovers were always on the tip of his tongue. They craved his words as much as they craved each other.

She strolled around them and watched, feeling the energy they created and feeding off of its sweet nectar. She listened to their soft sounds. The smack of lips and the shush of hands against skin. Here they were safe. Here they could escape their harsh and dreary lives. Here they could feel needed and weren’t afraid to be needed in return. They would wake when she sent them back, each of them thinking it was a vivid fantasy. This place was real however. It was hers and so were they. She had marked them after feeding from them the first time, a shoulder, the small of the back and an inner thigh. They would be hers for a long time to come.


	2. The Boy No One Wanted

Alistair Theirin understood cars. He loved taking them apart and making the engines purr again. If only girls were as easy to understand he’d be out dancing at a bar instead of at home lamenting his awkwardness. Alone on another Friday night he flipped through the TV channels listlessly. There were sitcoms and movies he might have been interested in if he wasn’t wallowing in a pool of self-pity. Disgusted he turned the TV off and tossed the remote on the table. He drained the beer in his hand as he stood.

Most women considered him either strange or extremely old fashioned. Alistair hadn’t met one yet that hadn’t outright laughed at him or friend zoned him. The former were easy to deal with. He usually played along, laughing with them, pretending a joke at his own expense. The latter were worse by far. There was no way to turn that rejection into a safe witty comment, no way for him to save face.

He sighed and shuffled to the front door of his small apartment. After making sure it was locked Alistair walked across the room, shutting lights off and tossing the bottle in the trash as he went. Once in his bedroom he stepped out of his sweatpants and dropped his undershirt to the floor. Alistair fell into bed face first in nothing but his boxers. After an hour of trying to shut his brain off he fell asleep and dreamed.

Walking down a long hallway his bare feet made soft slaps against the white tile. What he could see of the walls were also a sterile white. Most of the space was taken up by giant photographs however. He knew every person. Each one had thrown him away or simply disappeared from his life. Alistair had begun at one end flanked by a dark haired elven woman he thought might have been his mother and his famous father. He’d been given to a brother of his father’s actual wife as a babe, an innocent bastard child hidden away to preserve an indiscrete man’s reputation. He had never met his mother and his father had disappeared. Alistair wished he cared but the man had never cared a whit for him so it was no great loss.

The photos progressed through his childhood as he walked further down. He saw faces that had come and gone, his sort of Uncle, the sisters at the orphanage, exasperated teachers and friends. The end of the hallway seemed to be nothing but the various women he’d been rejected by over the years. He stood looking at the last photograph, his latest heartbreaking humiliation.

She was a receptionist at the gym he went to. Since his job started early Alistair had chosen this particular gym because it was always open. He’d spend some time talking with her after he’d showered and dressed. Asking nervously if she wanted to go out with him tonight had produced the dreaded sympathetic smile and the ‘I’m sorry you’re just a friend’ response he hated. Going to the gym would be awkward for a while but he couldn’t switch gyms. The other 24 hour facility was on the other side of town and he’d never make it to work on time.

His environment shifted and Alistair sat on a kitchen chair that had appeared behind him. This room was painted in soft pastels, empty except for the chair. A woman leaned on the door in front of him. Her dark hair hung past her shoulders and her grey eyes were locked on his. Alistair’s eyes grew wide when he noticed her. The only thing she wore was a lacey set of underclothes, navy blue and barely there.

Alistair didn’t move as she smiled and stepped forward. He watched entranced as she glided across the room. Her hands, the nails long and painted a light pink, came to rest on his shoulders as she straddled him and sat in his lap. It was her warm skin against his thighs that broke his paralysis. He held his hands out and smiled, trying not to stare at the tantalizing cleavage inches from his face.

“Um… hello,” he said shyly. “Do… I know you?”

“You could,” she said lightly brushing his bottom lip with a thumb. “I want to know you.”

He giggled nervously and she ran the fingers of her other hand lightly down his chest while the other drifted around to the back of his neck. The muscles of his stomach jumped when her fingers reached it, following the dark blonde trail that disappeared under his boxer shorts. She bent slightly, gripping his neck as she brushed their lips together.

“This is a joke,” Alistair said easily moving his head away. “It has to be. Any moment now Bill is going to pop through the door pointing and laughing.”

“No,” she said softly. Her hand trailed back up to his chest coming to rest lightly over one nipple. The other slid down his shoulder, down his upper arm to lightly grip his forearm. “There’s just us.”

The door turned to solid wall and she smiled, her teeth very white against the cherry red painted on her lips. Alistair swallowed hard as she moved his arm. His hand curled around her hip seemingly of its own accord. Her other hand drifted again, one nail scratching across the hard pebble his nipples had become, before pulling down one shoulder strap of her bra.

“Oh Maker that’s distracting,” Alistair said still trying to focus on her face and not the dark areola of her breast just visible. “You can’t possibly be serious.”

She smiled and pulled her arm from the strap. He gripped her hip tightly as she pushed the loose fabric down with one hand and reached for his other, still held awkwardly out to the side. His prick had been growing steadily stiffer and he swallowed hard again when she curled his large hand around her exposed breast.

“I do want you Alistair,” she whispered longingly.

“If it’s not a joke I must be dreaming,” he muttered to himself. He brushed his thumb across her nipple. “Where’s the harm in enjoying myself?” Alistair reached up and gently tugged at the other bra strap. Leaning forward he tentatively licked across that nipple and grinned at her pleased hum. “If you want me I’m all yours.”

Without a word she rose slightly, smiling down at him as she caressed his cheeks. Inexplicably their clothes were simply gone but Alistair didn’t think to question it. This was a dream after all. No one this beautiful could actually want him. His own parents hadn’t even wanted him. The only reason he wasn’t still a virgin was a sympathy fuck. He’d been half smashed at a bar whining to one of the waitresses who had later taken him home with her.

He bit his lip as she lined up his cock and sunk down. Tight wet heat surrounded his cock and he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. She smiled encouragingly and puffed out her chest. Alistair wrapped his arms around her and buried his face between her breasts. Her hips rocked and he moaned at the pleasure of the gentle slide he only half remembered. He took a nipple into his mouth and sucked, running his tongue over and around it.

Hands ran through his hair and she began making little groaning gasps. Glancing up he saw her head thrown back and her eyes mostly shut, her mouth opened slightly and her tongue moved restlessly across her top lip. Alistair switched breasts and let his hands slide down to her ass. She hummed approvingly and Alistair let go of his reservations.

Moans and groans filled the room. She bounced on his lap gripping his shoulders for balance. Alistair helped her with his hands on her hips, sucking and licking at her breasts or simply watching them bounce. Tension coiled in his gut and his breathing sped. Her noises took on a desperate note and Alistair struggled to move her up and down his cock faster. He leaned back in the chair and groaned loudly as her core clenched around him. She ground down on his lap and his balls drew up close to his body. He gasped as the building tension released, jetting semen deep within her.

“Oops,” he panted sheepishly. “Sorry.”

“What for love?” she asked quietly caressing his cheeks.

“I didn’t mean to…” Alistair trailed off when what she’d called him actually registered in his orgasm hazed brain. She was on his lap, his softening cock still inside her core, smiling at him like he was the best thing since sliced bread. He snorted and relaxed again. “Just a dream. Don’t need a condom. No little dream babies unless I want them. I don’t suppose you’d cuddle with me for a while? On a bed?”

She smiled and suddenly he was snuggled around her under a fluffy comforter. Alistair sighed and pulled her close to him, his eyes drifting shut. He felt a pinch high up on his inner thigh and jerked upright, blinking in the sudden gloom. The familiar objects in his bedroom slowly came into focus and he rubbed his eyes. Of course there was no one in the other side of his bed and he fell back, a little disappointed. He grimaced at the sticky wet feeling in his boxers. Alistair worked off his underwear and carefully cleaned up the spend on his cock.

“Haven’t done that in years,” he said around a yawn. “What a dream though.” He threw them over the side of the bed and sleepily rolled to his side. “She was beautiful.”

Alistair drifted off almost immediately completely unaware of the small pink heart that now graced his left thigh, hidden at the moment by his balls resting on top of it.

*

She watched him for a while after. His rest was easier and she was satisfied at the moment. It was troubling how he’d resisted and recognized her fantasy for what it was. This man’s pain ran deep. The mark she’d put on his thigh shined like a beacon. He would be fine for now but she would come back and check on him from time to time.

The energy their coupling had created invigorated her and she was eager to find someone else to help however. With one last look back at him she let her essence drift away into other parts of the Fade, searching the dreams of mortals for another troubled soul to soothe.


	3. The Man Who's Seen Too Much

Cullen Rutherford was between jobs. He had only recently moved back to Fereldan and didn’t have a good idea of what he wanted to do; only what he didn’t want to do. The only work experience he really had was law enforcement. His career as a police officer had begun in Calenhad, the city that housed Kinloch University where Ferelden’s mages learned to master their dangerous gift. After removing himself from a highly abusive relationship he moved to Kirkwall in the Free Marches.

Getting on the Kirkwall PD was an easy task but the job had been anything but. The city was a cesspool of gangs, thieves and other even less savory activities. The things he’d seen still haunted his dreams. Completely burned out he’d been given a leave of absence to clear his head and rejuvenate. The longer it lasted the more he didn’t want to go back. After considering his options he’d turned in an official resignation and began packing.

He’d chosen to go to Fereldan but moved to the capital city of Denerim rather than his hometown of Honnleath or Calenhad where his toxic ex still resided. It was a fresh start in a new city but he had yet to find a way to provide for himself. Living off of his savings couldn’t continue for much longer and he needed to figure out something. To that end he’d been going through the local newspaper and the Denerim Employment Resources website.

Several applications and a few resume’s had been sent through the internet for a variety of positions. Cullen planned to keep looking and accept the first one he was offered. There would be no more searching tonight however. He leaned back in his kitchen chair, mouth wide in a jaw cracking yawn. He scrubbed his cheeks, prickly with stubble, and watched his laptop until the screen went dark.

Shuffling around boxes he checked the front door of his apartment then made his way to his bedroom. Cullen turned around and after a brief search for the switch, turned off the kitchen light. In the dark maze of unpacked boxes he caught his toe on the corner of one and cursed his way onto his bed. He rubbed his sore toe and lay back thinking he would go through some of the boxes in the morning. He fell asleep quickly and dreamed.

A gentle breeze ruffled his hair and the loose button up shirt he wore. He pulled up his slacks at the knees and sunk to one of the sandy stretches of beach along Lake Calenhad. Kinloch rose up in the distance and he couldn’t suppress a shudder as he stared. His ex-girlfriend had been a student. She was beautiful, talented, arrogant, spoiled and manipulative. A trusting country boy like him hadn’t stood much of a chance against her arsenal of tears and lies.

“You got the better of her though.”

Cullen shot to his feet and whipped around. Sitting next to where he’d just been was a young woman with dark hair past her shoulders and kindly gray eyes. Her long legs were stretched out in front of her clad in light blue skinny jeans. A voluminous light purple sweater stopped just above the waistline of her jeans, revealing a small strip of her flat stomach. She smiled up at him; her lips colored a dark red and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear with a long dark pink fingernail.

“Sit down Cullen,” she chided him. “Were you day dreaming again?”

“I’m sorry Miss,” he said politely schooling his expression neutral. “But I’m afraid you’ve mistaken me for someone else. I don’t know you.”

“Of course I haven’t,” she said rolling her eyes. “We were talking about Amell before you spaced off.”

“No,” Cullen said frowning. “I was thinking of her and you just… Who are you?”

“A friend,” she said after a moment. She patted the sand next to her and smiled. “Sit. Enjoy the sun and the breeze. Forget. Relax and have fun.”

Still wary he sat next to her, resting his arms on his knees. He wondered who she was and where she’d come from. How did she know about Solana Amell? What else did she know? Forgetting was something he just couldn’t do. Maker knew he’d tried often enough. He started when he felt her hand running across the small of his back. She smiled reassuringly and rested her cheek against his bare shoulder.

Her fuzzy sweater was soft against his skin and her hand sliding across his back was comforting. Cullen gave her a small smile and relaxed a little. The breeze blew her hair and it tickled his back. He could feel the rough material of her jeans resting against his bare leg. It was then he realized all he had on was a pair of boxers. Cullen was positive he’d been wearing clothes when he first sat down. Where they’d gone he didn’t know but it set off alarm bells in his head.

“Miss,” Cullen said scooting away before standing up again. “This isn’t right.”

“It can be,” she said evenly.

“What do you want? Why me?”

“So suspicious,” she said sadly. “Is there nothing that will ease your mind?”

“I don’t know. If you’d seen half of the things I have… the awful things people are capable of…”

“I have.”

She stood and closed the distance between them, her expression one of sad sympathy. His mind was screaming at him to flee but something kept his feet rooted to the sand. A voice that had rarely been wrong after honing his instincts in Kirkwall told him she was sincere.

“This is foolish,” he muttered.

Cullen sunk back down onto the sand and smiled tightly up at her. He gestured to the spot next to him. She smiled and sat beside him, resting her cheek on his shoulder and rubbing his back like she had been before. The breeze ruffled their hair and waves lapped at the shore near their feet. He stared out across the water and slowly relaxed. After a while he lay on his back and she settled her head on his chest, his arm around her back resting on her side, and snuggled closely.

The longer nothing happened as he watched the clouds overhead the more relaxed he became. He was lying on an empty stretch of beach with a pretty young lady next to him. Slowly he became aware of her breasts against his side, her core pressed to his hip and her leg resting over his. His long neglected manhood began to take notice as well. His cock slowly swelled and stiffened, pushing the thin cotton up in a very noticeable way.

“Feeling better?” she asked softly. He could detect only curiosity.

“Yes,” he said after a moment.

She shifted slightly and the hand that had been resting on his chest in front of her face slid across his torso and came to rest on his side. Her breasts were now pressed more fully against his chest, her crotch a little closer to his stiff length. He watched the clouds and considered his next move carefully. Either he extracted himself from her and they parted amiably or he tested her willingness. The part of him that was always tense and watchful told him he was being very foolish for even considering sex.

Well, he thought to himself. I’ve already been foolish enough to lay here with a perfect stranger. I might as well be a complete fool.

He gently rolled her to her back and rose up on one elbow. She looked up at him, curious and perhaps a little eager. Cullen set his hand lightly on her stomach, pushing up the hem of her sweater a little. Leaning down he kissed her soft lips. It had been so long since he’d done this with anyone it would be bitterly disappointing to stop if she protested. Luckily she didn’t. Part of him knew he was thinking with the wrong head but when she pulled him down again he really didn’t care.

Her lips were slightly open, her hand clutching the back of his neck, and he boldly pushed his tongue through. She arched up seeking contact and he slid the hand on her stomach up under her shirt and discovered that she wasn’t wearing a bra as their tongues slid together. He cupped her breast and she hummed happily. Cullen pulled away from her lips and scooted down as he pushed her shirt up. Kneading one breast he took the other into his mouth.

She gasped when he gently bit her nipple, her hands running through his short hair. Licking and sucking, listening to her pleased noises, his cock throbbing in anticipation he abandoned the breast his mouth wasn’t occupied with. He pulled at the button on her jeans and slid the zipper down discovering happily that she also had no underwear on. Cullen slipped his hand down her pants and pressed a finger carefully through her labia and into her slick core.

“Yes,” she whispered breathily bucking up into his hand.

Pressing the heel of his hand against her clitoris he thrust with his finger. She groaned loudly and gripped his hair tightly. Cullen continued to lick and suck, switching breasts every now and again as he fucked her with his finger. All he wanted was to push his cock into her slick core and watch her breasts bounce as he slammed into her over and over but he patiently waited, listening to her increasingly loud and desperate noises. She screamed and clenched around his hand, bucking up, her hands gripping his hair so tight it hurt.

When she was again pliant he slipped his hand from her and kissed the skin between her breasts, slowly moving up to her collarbone. From there he kissed his way up her neck to her lips, hearing a pleased hum, feeling her hands soothing his scalp, his cock stiff and leaking.

“Again,” she murmured against his lips before thrusting her tongue through.

Cullen rose to his knees, pulling away slowly and reluctantly. He quickly peeled her jeans off and rid himself of his undershorts. Moments later his cock was surrounded by her tight heat and he let out a shuddering breath. Leaning over, her legs draped over his thighs, the fuzzy purple sweater rucked up to her armpits, her eyes closed and her mouth open, he watched her lick her top lip over and over as he began thrusting.

Too far gone in his lust for more patience he set a brutally fast pace. Her breasts bounced every time their flesh slapped together. The little gasping groans she uttered were music to his ears. The way she clenched her thighs over his to meet every thrust encouraged him to continue. With their foreheads pressed together their gasps and groans mingling, tension coiled quick and tight. Her hands clutched desperately to his shoulders and he knew she was close as well.

When his orgasm was imminent a small modicum of sense returned and he tried to pull out before filling her womb with his seed. Her legs were suddenly locked around his waist holding him securely in place while her channel gripped his cock with her second orgasm. His sperm ended up deep inside her anyway. They gasped and shuddered through their peaks, ending up twined together on the sand breathing heavily.

“Why did you do that?” he panted curiously.

She smiled mysteriously and caressed his cheek. He felt a pinch on his shoulder and jerked back, surprised at finding himself in his dark room with the sheets tangled around his feet.

“Thank the Maker,” he murmured after a moment. “Just a dream.” A brief inspection revealed that he had indeed come in his pants and he sighed. “A very vivid dream.”

Cullen rose briefly to change his boxers and pajamas before crawling back into bed. On his stomach he fell asleep quickly, the small pink heart just above his right shoulder blade perfectly visible if anyone had been there to see it.

*

Like the other one she lingered and watched for a while. His rest was now peaceful as well. This one had been as surprising as the dark haired blonde she helped find peace earlier. The resistance was expected. His sleeping mind was carefully shuttered against the circling nightmares but she had managed to slip through and leave them behind. They had moved on. The peace she had given him filled in the cracks of his shelter and there was no way through. The nightmares would be back however and she had marked him as well.

His eager willingness to couple with her was very surprising considering his formidable defenses. That had only made the energy they created sweeter and richer, reenergizing her despite the amount she’d expended. She caressed his mind, thanking him for feeding her, and drifted off to find another.


	4. Physician Heal Thyself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There isn't a hell of a lot of background for Anders in this chapter but we'll get more as the story progresses. 
> 
> For anyone who doesn't like the idea of Anders in a skirt please don't flood me with hate. You don't have to read it and this is being written mostly for me.
> 
> Enjoy. =)

This troubled soul was different than the other two. He was less transparent, more aware, actually in the Fade where the other two had been brief visitors. This mind belonged to a mage and she was surprised at how open and vulnerable he was. The pain she sensed from him was vivid and visceral. It tugged at her but she circled warily searching for his defenses. They were dim and she was astonished that more weren’t hungrily circling his mind. Cautiously she slipped through, suspecting he would know her for what she truly was. Even without that small bit of safety she couldn’t resist. She had to try and soothe him, let him rest easy and help him put his barriers back up. Not all of her fellow spirits would be so kind.

*

Anderson Thekla, known only as Anders to most, slept fitfully on his couch curled into a tight ball. Tear tracks covered his cheeks and more squeezed slowly from his closed eyes. His wedding anniversary was always a tough day for him and his job had only made coping worse. As a fully licensed physician, both mundane medical and magical, Anders had his pick of health care professions. He’d interned at Denerim Memorial Hospital’s ER and saw many people he could have helped more if he had only seen them sooner. Anders had chosen first response when his internship was done.

His husband, Karl Thekla, had fully supported his decision despite the smaller pay check. Anders would always be grateful for that support even though he hadn’t been able to save him. The night Karl died Anders had been working. Called in to a five car pileup at a notoriously dangerous intersection, Anders’ ambulance had been the second on the scene. Seeing Karl’s little blue sedan in the middle, torn and twisted into an almost unrecognizable heap of metal and plastic had been the worst moment of his life. Karl had died instantly.

Working on his wedding anniversary was always better than being at home dwelling on his loss. Vehicle wrecks were always difficult for him but more so on this particular day. The woman they’d pulled out of a rolled SUV had been unconscious but alive. Anders had completely drained his mana to make sure she stayed that way. A job well done and grateful family members couldn’t stop the nightmares however.

He knew he was dreaming even as he lived through that horrible night again. Flashing lights were everywhere as he stood on the sidewalk staring at Karl’s smashed car, held back by a colleague. Anders yelled and slumped onto his partner after hearing the words that were seared into his mind. I’m sorry Anders… he’s gone.

Anders felt his knees come unhinged and Michael Epstein lowered him to the ground. Through his grief he sensed that the man in front of him was no longer who he appeared to be. With tears still streaming down his cheeks Anders shoved him backwards and just managed to catch himself before falling face first onto the pavement. Michael was sprawled on his rear, frowning. Their eyes met and everything around him slowed then stopped. People were bent in awkward positions, lights frozen in mid-flash, smoke and flames hanging unnaturally still in the crisp night air but the man in front of him rolled to his knees.

“What do you want spirit?” Anders demanded his voice hitching and cracking.

“To end this torture,” the spirit said. “Five mortal years is a long time. Why has this memory not dulled?”

“Karl was everything,” Anders said. He pushed himself up and brushed his hands off on his dark blue cargo uniform pants. “I will always feel his loss.”

“So much so that you leave yourself so vulnerable?” the spirit said curiously. “You are fortunate that I found you first.”

The spirit stood and Michael’s form rippled. A woman stepped forward and stood over him. Her hair was long and black. Steely gray eyes met his and she smiled sadly. Anders swiped at his cheeks and examined her closely as he stood. She looked completely human. Bare feet met shapely calves that disappeared under a thin white dress. A dark shadow was clearly visible through the gauzy skirts just below her waist and her nipples pushed out the thin material, pebbled and stiff in the chilly air. Thin strips of fabric were all that held up the nightgown, her arms and shoulders completely exposed. Long fingernails were painted a pale pink and the only other bright color she wore was deep red lipstick.

“Try a little harder,” said Anders rubbing his eyes, his voice still trembling but slightly firmer. “I’m not going lose myself at a bit of skin.”

“This is the form I prefer,” she said. Her smile turned a little predatory and her form rippled again. “This is what I would have chosen to seduce you.”

Anders swallowed hard and took a step back. The spirit was now a tall Qunari male. Her gray eyes were exactly the same but her black hair had shortened considerably, bare on the sides with a stripe between the horns curled around her ears. Broad shoulders were connected to a very well defined chest and a perfect six pack. Her arms looked large enough to break him in half. Smirking she hooked a thumb in the waistband of the white underpants she wore and pulled out the thickest flaccid cock he’d ever seen. As he watched her cock became fully erect, the girth increasing further. Despite the carnage still around him lust settled firmly in his crotch, his thoughts on having that deliciously huge prick impaling him over and over again. He shook his head, closed his eyes and took another step back.

“Point taken,” said Anders in a high nervous warble.

“Let’s go somewhere else,” she said her voice still deep and masculine.

When he opened his eyes they were in a small diner he went to often. The sun shone brightly through the window next to the booth they were seated in. Across from him the spirit still looked like the Qunari but her ripped chest was covered in a tight white T-shirt with the words ‘Adore Me’ written in block print across it. He glanced under the table and saw her lower half was covered in a pair of blue jeans and black motorcycle boots with shiny silver buckles. Anders also noticed that his clothing had changed as well. Instead of his uniform he wore one of his favorite skirts and a matching teal button up shirt, the long sleeves rolled halfway up his forearms.

Most men wore sweatpants to slop around the house in but Anders had always preferred a skirt. Before his magic had manifested at twelve his mother had been indulgent but his father had never approved of his oldest wearing girl’s clothing. Afterwards his father had disowned him despite his mother’s protests and he was given to the officials of Kinloch Orphanage with a sneer and a growled warning to never darken his door again. Growing up at the orphanage in Kinloch it had been a source of many jokes and a few fist fights but he’d never backed down or buckled under and stopped wearing them. Karl had always defended him and they’d both ended up with black eyes on a few occasions. That this spirit could see so much was alarming.

“Hey Anders,” said a bubbly waitress he knew well. She turned so the spirit couldn’t see her face and gave him an impressed look while mouthing the word ‘hot’. “Coffee for you?”

“Yes,” said Anders struggling to keep his voice even.

“And you?” she asked turning to the spirit.

“Water,” she replied with an easy smile.

“I’ll be back in a jiff,” the waitress said cheerfully. She gave him a thumbs sign up as she turned away to the kitchen.

Anders smiled tightly until she disappeared and turned to the spirit with a scowl. “What are you playing at?” he hissed his hands clenched on the table top. “You won’t get what you want out of me.”

“On the contrary,” she said smugly leaning forward. “I’ve already gotten what I want. The barriers around your sleeping mind are strengthening as we speak. My unsavory cousins will find you aren’t easy prey and move on.”

“Right,” he said skeptically. “I’m supposed to believe you’re hanging around out of kindness? There’s a catch.”

“No catch,” she said shaking her head slightly. “No conditions.”

“Then leave,” said Anders leaning away and crossing his arms over his chest.

“I think not.” The spirit leaned back as well and draped one beautifully muscled arm across the back of the booth. “You are not sufficiently distracted. I see a lot of pain within you. Your mind dwells on things better left buried and I will see you safely through the night.”

“By irritating me?” he snapped.

“By distracting you.”

“I don’t…” Anders began heatedly. The waitress carrying a small tray and headed for their table stopped him.

“Coffee,” she said setting a mug in front of him. “And water. Know what you want or do you need more time?”

I want to sit on that lap, Anders thought sullenly as he said, “Give us a few more minutes.”

“Sure thing,” the waitress said with a pleasant smile.

Across from him the spirit smirked and stretched out a little, nudging his leg with one boot. The waitress moved off to another table and he glared at the spirit.

“What would it hurt?” said the spirit softly. “A night of pleasure with no strings attached. You would sleep, deep and restful. We could go to the park. You could ride me as long as you want, your skirt spread around us. A cheap hotel room where I’d bend you over and pound you until you begged me to stop. In the alley out back, your legs locked around my waist. You could hold on to my horns, my cock deep up your ass. On a bed, your cock trapped between your own body and the silky sheets beneath. I would fuck you so hard you'd be screaming in pleasure, writhing underneath me every time my balls slapped your ass. Or maybe I’d bend you over the hood…”

“Stop!” Anders exclaimed. He shook his head trying to clear it of each image she’d planted there. “Keep your enormously gorgeous cock to yourself! I’m not some green student that you can trick with suggestions no matter how appealing they are.”

Everything shifted again and he was in a room painted in soft pastel colors. Large hands gripped his hips and her deep voice rumbled in his ear, “For your dreams.”

He felt that giant cock against his ass along with a pinch on the left side of his lower back. Furious he lashed out with his magic, growling as he whipped around, his skirt billowing out briefly. There was nothing and no one behind him but he clearly heard her feminine voice whispering to him.

“Until next we meet Anders. Be well.”

Anders woke so suddenly and violently he rolled off the couch and onto the floor. He cursed as he pushed away the coffee table, knocking over a glass and sliding the remote to the floor. Scrambling to his feet he pushed off of the couch and sprinted for the downstairs bathroom. Anders socked feet skidded on the blue and white checkered tile and he slipped to his knees. Righting himself on the vanity he slammed the door shut and flipped the light switch on.

Ignoring his sleep disheveled hair sticking out at strange angles and the tightness of dried tears on his cheeks he turned, his fingers working at the button and zipper of his uniform pants that he’d fallen asleep in. Pushing them and his underwear down past his ass he pulled up his white undershirt and twisted around to see his back in the mirror on the door. On the left side, right where he’d felt the pinch, was a small pink heart that hadn’t been there when he’d fallen asleep. He rubbed his fingers across it but the edges didn’t blur or fade.

“Shit,” he muttered morosely.


	5. She Gets it Wrong

Alistair had noticed the little pink heart the very next morning in the shower. Scrubbing had proved futile. He wondered if it was some sort of skin disease in the unlikely shape of a heart. Given the area the strange little mark had appeared on he’d also briefly considered a weird sexually transmitted disease that he’d never heard of. That was dismissed right away however. One had to have sex before one could get a disease from it and he seriously doubted vivid wet dreams counted.

He thought of several more unlikely possibilities and dismissed them. Since it didn’t hurt or bother him in the slightest, Alistair had decided to not worry about the little pink heart. In the event that anyone actually saw the thing, something he found very improbable, he would claim it as a drunken dare. The rest of his weekend passed by in the same boring way most of his others did, a football game with his friends, a trip to the movie theater, sleeping at home alone, a trip to the supermarket, cleaning house, laundry and more sleeping at home alone.

When his alarm went off at five o’clock Monday morning he didn’t allow himself to procrastinate like he wanted. He put on his workout clothes, red basketball shorts and a plain red T-shirt, and packed a clean uniform in his bag. After a quick bagel and a glass of orange juice he grabbed two cold bottles of water from the fridge, his gym bag and his keys. In the car he tried not to dwell on how embarrassed he felt.

Jamie sat at the reception desk when he pushed through one of the double glass doors. She smiled at him and Alistair smiled and waved like he always had. He walked past trying not to hurry. In the locker room it was easier to push his embarrassment to the back of his mind. Alistair stored his bag and focused on his routine. One good thing about going to the gym at six in the morning was he rarely had to wait for any of the machines. He ran on one of the treadmills and went from one weight machine to another, using the disinfectant wipes found everywhere when he was finished with them.

After a shower he put his work clothes on, repacked his gym bag and stood at the door to the locker room. He took a deep breath and stepped out into the hallway. Alistair was tense as he headed for the main doors. When he entered the lobby he uttered a tiny sigh of relief. Standing at the reception desk conveniently distracting Jamie was a tall blonde man. His hair was that classic yellowish color that girls swooned over and he ran a hand self-consciously through his own dark dirty blonde locks.

“See you Wednesday Jamie,” Alistair said cheerfully as he passed.

The man glanced over at him and Alistair nodded politely as Jamie waved to him. Not only did this man have perfect hair he had a rugged look that girls went nuts for too, complete with a scar on his upper lip. The man smiled and nodded back then Alistair was past them and out the front doors. I bet she’d go out with him, Alistair thought sullenly as he unlocked his car. He put it out of his mind as he started his old boat, thinking about what repairs he’d be doing after he clocked in.

*

She checked on the three men she’d marked every night since. The mage’s mind was carefully defended. The mark would allow her to slip safely past but there had been no reason. His sleep hadn’t been completely peaceful but it was far from the vivid tangle of pain she’d first found him in. The man haunted by nightmares had also slept fairly well, his shutters holding against them. Her undefended innocent had previously been peaceful but tonight he was troubled. She circled his mind for a while, watching, learning and hoping.

*

Pounding music blared from inside the large house on the outskirts of the city. Alistair sat outside on the large back yard patio with a few others trying to escape with their ear drums intact. One of his friends had dragged him along with the sole purpose of getting him laid. He had been skeptical in the first place but had amiably agreed having nothing better to do with his evening. Five dance partners and dozens of conversations later his friend had disappeared upstairs with a pretty red head while he’d gone outside alone with a decent buzz.

He was nursing some fruity concoction and chatting with the others who’d come outside when a familiar woman sauntered out through the sliding glass doors. Her black hair was pulled up in a bun on top of her head, a few wisps framing her face. She wore a skin tight sky blue tank top that matched her eye shadow. The black bra she wore underneath was clearly visible, the straps pushed down around her shoulders for some reason. Her dark blue skirt rippled around her legs as she strutted over, the heels she wore thumping on the wooden deck.

Alistair was positive he’d seen her before but couldn’t pinpoint just where. He was amazed when she smoothed her skirts over her lovely heart shaped ass and sat on one of his thighs. She smiled at him as she leaned over, an arm resting along the back of the deck chair. Alistair did his best not to squirm at the whistles and cat calls, wondering why this woman thought his lap was a good place to sit. He wasn’t about to complain however.

“Good evening boys,” she said her voice low and sultry.

“Damn Al,” an acquaintance said enviously. “How’d you get such a knockout?”

“More like how much did he pay,” said one of the strangers.

There were now hoots and guffaws making the rounds. Alistair gripped his glass tightly in one hand and the arm of the chair in the other, his face flaming red. She twirled a finger though his short hair and shifted slightly on his lap. One hot pink fingernail under his chin easily pushed his head up and she leaned over pressing their lips together.

He was surprised but responded quickly, following where she led, letting her tongue through his lips. She pulled away slowly and Alistair tried to follow those luscious red lips like an eager puppy. The renewed cat calls turned to laughter again and he began to seriously try and think of a way out of this odd situation so he could go bury his head in a sand trap on the golf course not too far away.

“Excuse us gentleman,” she said plucking the glass from his hand. “We’re going to find somewhere a bit less crowded.”

She stood and set the glass on the ground bending over at the waist, giving him a really good look at her ass. Alistair stood when she took his hand. His normally smart mouth had deserted him and he tried not to slouch as he let her lead him away, listening to the others cheer him on in a repeating chorus of ‘Al-is-tair’. Further into the backyard where the music was faint background noise he pulled out of her grip.

“As much as I love being teased and humiliated,” he said irritably. “That was just about the cruelest thing ever.”

“You think me cruel?” she said clearly shocked.

“Would you mind telling me just who you are and who put you up to this so I can bloody his nose the next time I see him?”

“I don’t understand. They wanted me but I chose you. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“What I want is someone who wants me. Not someone who’s probably been paid to act the part. Now. Since you seem to have a problem with questions. I’m going home to hide in shame for a while.”

Alistair rubbed at lip stick smears with his sleeve as he stalked off. He fumed in the cab on the way back to his apartment. Most of his anger was spent by the time he trudged up the stairs to the second floor of his building. Lights burned under the doorway and he frowned, cautiously pushing it open. A woman popped her head out of his kitchen and smiled.

“It’s just me dear,” she said brightly. “I let myself in I hope you don’t…” Her expression became concerned as he stepped inside and shut the door. “Is something wrong?”

“A practical joke in extremely poor taste,” Alistair said sullenly. He kicked the door closed and the woman met him halfway through the living room. “I thought you had to go to Gwaren?”

She stood on her toes and gave him a chaste kiss on the corner of his mouth. “I finished early. Let’s go to bed.”

He smiled down at her and thought of how much he loved her gray eyes. She might not be drop dead gorgeous, have the perfect ass or large tits that turned heads but she was beautiful all the same. With the lights off and the door locked they retired to his bedroom. Under the covers hands wandered. That led to kissing which led to a fumbled attempt at rolling a condom down his stiff cock. His girlfriend giggled and grabbed another, smiling indulgently at his sheepish grin. When she had the condom on right he rolled her onto her back. He pushed through her folds and into her slick core, leaning over her so they could kiss while he rocked into her. Slow and steady drew out their pleasure. She groaned as she came, her eyes shut and her tongue running along her upper lip. Alistair sped his pace to chase his own release, gasping as that tension in his gut let go.

Alistair started awake, his cock still pumping semen into his boxers. He groaned in irritation and scrubbed his face.

“Maker not again,” he muttered. “How pathetic can you get...”

He worked off his undershorts and cleaned up the mess. Tossing them over the side he curled up and went back to sleep.

*

She circled his sleeping mind worriedly, wondering what she’d done wrong. His sleep was more restful than it had been but she sensed the nagging worry underneath his thoughts. The energy from their coupling hadn’t been nearly as satisfying as it had been last time. She continued to circle, watching, wondering and protecting.


	6. Questions and Anders

The dream he’d been having dissolved around him and Anders found himself back in the diner with the spirit sitting across from him. She looked like the Qunari with the huge cock that had been featured in a few fantasies since the first time he’d seen her. He crossed his arms over his chest, noting the royal blue tank top and jean skirt he had on, and scowled at her.

“I was wondering when you’d bother me again,” he said caustically.

“You humans are so confusing,” she rumbled irritably. “I offer you exactly what you desire and expect little in return yet you deny yourself.”

“Your offers always come with strings. I’d rather go without.”

“I did not come here to coerce you onto my cock.” She leaned forward and smirked smugly. “I know you dream about it. Where was the last one… ah yes.”

She snapped her fingers and Anders found himself pressed to the wall of the men’s room in the movie theater he'd gone to recently. The fluorescent lighting glared off the porcelain urinals, the stall doors all stood open and the entrance was only a few feet to his left. Her huge hands pressed his to the wall and she towered over him. He could feel her cock against his lower back, stiff, enormous and rutting gently.

“Get off,” Anders snarled pushing back against her with all his might.

The spirit stepped away and Anders whirled around to see her standing a few feet away, hands held up in surrender. She was still smirking and he glared at her, keeping his eyes stubbornly on that smirk rather than her cock jutting out from her open jeans. He tugged his shirt down and smoothed his skirt over his ass before leaning against the wall.

“You’re not going to convince me of your _noble_ intentions with stunts like that,” he said.

“My apologies,” she said evenly. The spirit touched her prick and it became flaccid instantly. She tucked it back into her jeans and pulled the zipper as she continued in a puzzled tone. “Your thoughts and desires indicate that you enjoy a forceful partner.”

“A partner _I_ choose,” Anders said pushing away from the wall. “I might lust after that cock but I have _not_ chosen the being it’s attached to. Your advances are unwanted.”

“Are all humans so resistant?” she asked leaning back onto the partition between stalls. She hooked her thumbs into the pockets of her jeans and put one boot flat on thin metal behind her. “The innocent one thought me cruel for giving him what he wanted. He walked away instead of completely fulfilling his desires.”

“Good for him,” said Anders flatly. “I take it I’m part of your harem now?”

“Harem?” she replied with a puzzled frown. “I am not familiar with this word.”

Anders rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Never mind. Are we done here? You interrupted a pleasant memory.”

“I need your assistance,” the spirit said evenly. “I must understand my mistake.”

“Do you honestly think I’m going to help you devour this poor man’s mind?” Anders said incredulously. “You’re more arrogant than I gave you credit for. Marking me in a moment of weakness so you could slide past my barriers was despicable enough but assuming I’d help you destroy someone else? Andraste’s flaming knickers!”

He pushed off the wall and stalked over to the entrance and yanked it open only to have it slammed in his face. Anders whirled around and glared up at the spirit looming over him.

“I do not devour or destroy the visitors who come to my home,” she snarled. “I seek out the troubled minds and soothe them. I cannot feed off of the broken.”

“And just what is it that you do feed on?” Anders asked calmly.

“The energy of life,” she said now sounding completely calm. “When mortals couple, when I couple with mortals, energy flows around and between. Created from the act itself. That is what sustains me.”

“You eat sexual energy?” Anders said arching an eyebrow.

“Most times there are enough dreamers all I have to do is wander. I have come to enjoy the act but I don’t need to participate to feed.”

“So why are you mucking around in troubled minds?”

“The hurt and worried do not dream of sex. They dream of their fears and their pain. I ease the fears. Soothe the worry. Make their rest peaceful and safe so that I have more to feed on the next night.”

Anders had definitely heard worse reasons. If she were telling him the truth it might be worthwhile helping her. If she were lying for some reason however he was dooming a man who apparently didn’t know what he’d attracted. He shook his head slowly.

“I won’t help you,” he said firmly.

“Very well,” she sighed taking a step back.

“But…” Anders added before she could disappear completely. “Since you’ve been feeding off of my fantasies anyway.” He pulled up his skirt and pushed down his underwear, kicking his sneakers off as he stepped out of them. Anders turned and put his palms against the door, pushing his ass out. “I might as well get to actually enjoy that cock.”

Large hands slid up his legs, pushing up his knee length skirt. “Spread ‘em wide beautiful,” she purred as she flipped it up over his back. He widened his stance as much as he dared and shuddered in eager anticipation when he felt those huge digits grip his ass cheeks. “I’m going to make you scream.”

A single slick finger was suddenly shoved into his entrance and Anders gasped. There were only a few thrusts to spread whatever she was using for lube then it disappeared. He forced himself to relax knowing what was to come next. The head of her cock was pressed against his hole, slowly pushing forward until he swallowed the widest part. There was a pause and Anders took a deep shuddering breath, feeling the stretch and burn of too much too quickly. Still forcing himself to be loose and pliant he waited eagerly. Her hands gripped his hips and Anders did scream when she hilted her cock in one quick motion.

“Dear Maker,” he whispered breathlessly.

His eyes watered from pain but her firm grip kept him from squirming away from the uncomfortable intrusion that went further up his ass than any other cock or toy he previously had. The burning stretch of his hole around her gargantuan girth had him panting rapidly. His arms trembled and his legs wobbled but he remained upright, the strong hands at his hips helping to steady him as he waited for the initial pain to pass. She remained still and patient, waiting.

“Fuck me,” Anders demanded hoarsely. “Fuck me hard.”

“As you wish,” the spirit said calmly.

Without any sort of warning she pulled almost completely out and slammed back into him hard enough that he rocked forward on the balls of his feet. Again and again the spirit slid her cock nearly out and thrust forward with a Qunari’s considerable strength. Anders screamed with every slap of flesh, reveled in the thick cock that felt a bit like it was splitting him open. The pain and pleasure mixed and mingled, making his eyes water and his limbs quiver, pushing at the very edge of his threshold. His cock was stiff, bouncing wildly with every powerful thrust.

She stopped with his hole stretched taut around the base of her cock. Anders panted harshly, wanting her to keep going but slumping against the strong arms that slid up around his chest. Everything shifted but the cock up his ass, the arms around him and the chest they held him against. His clothes were gone as well as the entire men’s room. Carefully he was lowered to the floor on his stomach, the prick in his ass never shifting a single inch. Anders clutched at the soft fluffy material underneath him and felt the spirit over him, one large hand caressing his back before coming to rest beside his head.

The pace she set was rapid and shallow but no less demanding on his body. He whimpered and squirmed, crying out hoarsely as her cock pressed against his prostate. Anders was completely wrung out when he finally reached his peak. She kept up the quick pace and he struggled underneath her, his over sensitive nerves finally starting to tip over the knife’s edge of pleasure and into pain. Suddenly her rhythm stopped and she grunted, jerking into him once more.

Slowly she eased out of him and carefully rolled him to his side. Belatedly Anders realized this would be a perfect opportunity for her, while he was hazy with endorphins and exhaustion, unable to stop her. Apprehensively he curled up watching her warily. The Qunari rippled and shifted to the female human she claimed to prefer. She smiled and brushed sweaty hair off of his forehead.

“Rest easy,” she said gently. “I will stay with you for a bit but I will not harm you.”

Anders watched as long as he was able. She ran her fingers through his hair, rubbed comforting little circles on his back or simply let her hand rest on his shoulder. Eventually the need for actual sleep caught up to him. He closed his eyes and struggled to open them moments later. Anders recognized his own bed in the gloomy darkness. His backside was sore and his stomach sticky with semen.

“Maker,” he mumbled thickly. “That was incredibly stupid.” He rolled to his side wearily and pulled a large fuzzy rainbow zebra striped body pillow closer. Anders threw one leg over the top and hugged it to his chest, too tired to clean up. His eyes drifted shut moments later.

*

She drifted over to check the other two, extremely glad they were resting peacefully. Even though the mage had chosen not to answer her questions she had an idea of something that might work a little better for her men the next time one was troubled. For now she drifted lazily back to the small spot she considered hers and sprawled out, glutted from the rich energy their coupling had created, wondering if it was possible to always feed on such sweet nectar.


	7. A Deserted Island

It had taken Cullen a few days to notice the little pink heart on his shoulder. Scratching and scrubbing had proved useless. Rubbing it with alcohol did nothing as well. Puzzled as to where the strange little tattoo had come from he’d been checking websites for tattoo parlors in his spare time. That search was yielding no results but he’d finally been called back for an interview on his job search. The interview had gone well and Cullen had just gotten a call for a second interview.

Cullen had no doubt that he would be hired but the job was one he’d applied at out of desperation. He didn’t particularly want to be evening security at the largest shopping mall in Denerim. Dealing with pickpockets and shoplifters was much preferable to dealing with murderers and rapists but it was still a little too close to the job he’d left behind in Kirkwall. The drain on his savings couldn’t continue however and it would be a pay check at the very least. With any luck one of the other companies he’d applied at would give him another option.

Rather than dwell on his less than ideal job offer he worked at getting the rest of his life on track. Finding a gym had helped immensely. Cullen didn’t know many people in Denerim yet so he mostly stayed home when he wasn’t running errands or collecting applications. He expected that to change when he actually had a job to go to. Part of getting his life in order was digging through the maze of boxes he’d been living out of and that was something he could focus on right now. Soon he was engrossed in emptying, sorting and putting away. It was late when he fell exhausted into bed.

*

The haunted man’s mind wasn’t sheltered from nightmares very well tonight. She searched for the mage and found him not too far away, his defenses strong. Carefully she coaxed them together into the same dream. The mage’s strong barriers would keep out her haunted man’s nightmares. She descended into their shared dream but did not reveal herself. Instead she kept her distance and watched.

*

Cullen pushed through the leafy barrier of the jungle and stumbled onto the sandy shore beyond. He trudged up to the water’s edge wondering where here was and how he’d gotten there. Given the fact that he had no shoes and only wore a pair of khaki shorts with a white button up that had seen better days he thought maybe his ship had wrecked and he’d wandered away from it for some reason. Where he’d been going and why he’d been going there was a complete mystery however.

He looked down the beach, hoping to find either the wreckage or other survivors. There were no large chunks of boat but he did see a lone figure in the distance. Cullen waved his arms and hollered to get their attention. The person waved their arms back after a moment and he started down the beach toward them. When Cullen was closer he saw the person was a slender man with sandy blonde hair pulled back in a tail. His button up shirt had also seen better days as had the long cotton skirt he wore.

Having spent years living in a large metropolitan city as a police officer Cullen had seen many things. A man wearing a woman’s skirt was pretty low on his strange list. If the skirt hadn’t been torn in a couple of places with green smears in various spots he thought the man would have looked pretty good in it. Aware of his own dirty and disheveled appearance Cullen wouldn’t bring it up.

“Thank the Maker,” the man said when they finally reached each other. “I thought I was alone. Any idea where we’re at? I’m Anders by the way.”

“Cullen,” he said holding out his hand. Anders gripped his hand and they shook. “I’m very pleased to see you as well but I’m afraid I have no idea where we’re at.”

“Well Cullen,” Anders said cheerfully. “I suggest we find some shade and compare notes. I’m not exactly sure how I got here.”

“There,” said Cullen after a quick look around.

He pointed to a palm tree near a large rock a little ways down the shore and further away from the water. Anders nodded and they headed over together. The shade felt wonderful after the heat of the midday sun. He sunk down and heard his companion sigh in relief at the palpable drop in temperature.

“That is much better,” Anders sighed as he smoothed his skirt under him before sitting next to Cullen. He stretched his long legs out and crossed them at his ankles. “I woke in the jungle over that way. No clue how I got there.” Anders gestured in the direction he’d come from.

Cullen nodded and waved a hand back to where he’d pushed through the undergrowth. “Me too. I don’t think how we ended up here is nearly as important as how we’re going to leave. I wandered in there for quite a while and saw no signs of any civilization.”

“Neither did I. I walked along the beach for quite a stretch too and saw nothing of note.”

Frowning he looked out over the beach to the sea beyond. Blue water covered the horizon from end to end. There were no jet trails in the sky. If they waited for nightfall Cullen would bet there would be no lights anywhere besides the stars in the sky.

“Marooned on a deserted island with no one but each other.” Cullen snorted and shook his head.

“It’s like the beginning of one of those horrible romance movies women love watching. Our two heroes struggle to survive the elements while waiting to be rescued. Slowly they fall in love and forget about waiting for a boat because they’re too busy staring into each other’s eyes when they aren’t fucking like rabbits.”

“I don’t think we’ll have to worry about turning cliché,” Cullen chuckled.

Anders smirked at him and leaned a little closer. “Don’t think I could fall for a ruggedly handsome stranger? Maybe I should ask after your preferences before I go too much further and stick my foot in it.”

“Bi,” said Cullen evenly. “With a slight preference for the opposite sex. You’re wearing a wedding band however.”

“You’re very observant,” said Anders as he tucked his left hand underneath his leg. “My husband has been dead for five years. I just… can’t bring myself to take the ring off.”

“I’m sorry,” Cullen said softly. “He must have been very important to you.”

“He was,” Anders said with a small smile. “I knew him since we were kids. We were both in the orphanage at Kinloch. I guess you could say we were high school sweethearts.”

“I lived in Calenhad years ago. I was dating a mage at the time.” 

“Which mage? Maybe we have some common history.”

“Solana Amell.”

“That stuck up bitch?” said Anders incredulously. “No wonder I don’t remember seeing you. Karl and I stayed as far off of her radar as we could get.”

“I was young and stupid,” Cullen said evenly. “She was beautiful and sophisticated…”

“Arrogant, controlling, selfish…”

“I discovered that later,” said Cullen ruefully. “I’m originally from Honnleath. She was unlike anyone I’d known.”

“Bad taste in women aside,” Anders said. “What took you to Calenhad in the first place?”

“I trained in the police academy there. I moved to Kirkwall to get away from Solana. I recently retired from the PD and moved to Denerim.”

“I live in Denerim too. When we get rescued we can go home together!”

“Staring into each other’s eyes the whole way,” said Cullen grinning.

“Don’t forget the fucking like rabbits bit,” said Anders wiggling his eyebrows. “That’s my favorite part really.”

“If we’re going to do this properly we need to get the survival part done first,” Cullen said seriously. He stood and offered his hand, unable to hide the grin slowly spreading across. “Then we fall in love. Then we have sex.”

“Why is the best bit always last,” Anders complained taking his hand.

“If we do it _properly_ ,” Cullen said pulling him up.

“I vote we do it improperly then,” said Anders firmly. “You’re much too handsome to waste time on mooning and pining.”

“Survival first…”

*

She pulled away from them thinking deeply. They would both rest easy despite sharing a bit of their pain with each other. Neither of them had reacted to the scene she’d set like she thought they would. The talk of sex was surprising and had excited her but she doubted they would couple. Bringing them together again and letting them proceed at their own pace might produce an encounter however. She was eager to see what it would taste like.

The nightmares had gone and she left her mage and her haunted man to seek out the innocent one. His rest was peaceful but she could still sense the nagging worry her mistake had created. Perhaps one of the other two could ease his doubt.


	8. Lost and Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy Maker this one got huge.

Alistair hopped down from the chair he’d been standing on and grinned sheepishly at the woman behind the changing room counter. She glared at him; he shrugged and then scurried off down the aisle with red cheeks. Not for the first time today he cursed his own horrible sense of direction. He wasn’t exactly sure how he managed to get lost in the largest department store he’d ever seen that exclusively sold women’s clothing but getting back out was proving a near impossible task.

Getting a higher look around hadn’t helped at all. There were racks of clothing in every direction as far as the eye could see. He hurried away from the changing counter hoping he wasn’t heading for the under things section again. Alistair walked past racks of shirts in every color and style, ranging in size tiny to extra, extra large. The women he passed either didn’t notice or looked at him with puzzled disbelief. He hurried by, an apologetic smile plastered to his face.

After what seemed like an hour the shirts gave way to skirts and there was still no sign of a doorway. Frustrated he stopped and turned a circle. Desperate to find a way out he approached a woman going through one of the racks. Her back was to him and he slowed a little, admiring her backside while he decided if it was safe to actually talk to her. She was on the tall side with unusually broad shoulders, her blonde hair pulled back in a tail. The skirt she wore ended just below her knees and he couldn’t help but admire what he saw of her legs as well as her bottom. It was the glint of gold on her left hand that made up his mind. If she was married he didn’t need to worry about stumbling over his words trying to impress her.

“Excuse me miss,” he said as he got closer. “I was won…” The woman turned, an eyebrow arched and frowning in irritation. This person was definitely not a woman. His chest was completely flat, his button up shirt undone enough that a few dark blonde hairs were visible against the dark green material, and his jaw was covered in stubble.

“Oh Maker,” Alistair said in a rush feeling mortified. “I am _so_ sorry! I saw the skirt and the hair from behind I assumed… I’m _really_ sorry.”

“It’s all right,” the man said his frown turning to a small smile. “You’re not the first person to make that mistake. You are the first person to give me a sincere apology however.”

“If you’ll point me towards the nearest door I’ll take my embarrassment elsewhere.”

“Sincere apologies and not afraid to ask for directions.” The man grinned and took a step closer. “Are you single?”

“Err… yes?”

“What luck! Would you care to have lunch with me…”

“Alistair,” he said feeling more confused than embarrassed now.

“I’m Anders,” he said his grin widening. Anders gestured to his left and continued excitedly. “The exit is right over that way and there’s a café just around the corner that serves the best ham sandwich.”

“All right,” said Alistair with a puzzled smile. He wasn’t sure why Anders was so cheerful after he’d just insulted the man but he was willing to do almost anything to get out of this store. “I am a little hungry.”

The exit was ridiculously close but Alistair would have definitely missed it. It was a rather small unassuming side entrance and he’d been looking for double glass doors and large display cases with mannequins in silly poses. The sun and fresh air felt wonderful after the stale department store air conditioning. Alistair walked along the busy street chatting with his companion, still a little confused but not worried now that he wasn’t lost anymore.

Anders pushed through the door of a small mom’n’pop diner and Alistair followed him in. The décor was a stylish retro look with chrome everywhere, checkered black and white flooring, red vinyl seating and pictures along the walls. He slowed to look at one of the pictures and grinned at the vintage roadster it showed. A few more pictures, a few more shiny old vehicles and Alistair sat at a booth opposite Anders still grinning.

“I like this place already,” Alistair said cheerfully. “Do you know who owns the cars in the photographs?”

“I don’t,” said Anders smiling. “Do you like old cars?”

“Anything with wheels really,” he replied.

Anders nodded and leaned forward, folding his arms on the table in front of him. “Before I embarrass myself, can I ask you something rather personal?”

“Uhh… sure.”

“Do you like men?”

“Like…” Alistair’s eyebrows shot up after a moment of thought. “You mean _like,_ as in… like…”

“That’s a no,” Anders said leaning back in his seat. He was still smiling but his expression was disappointed.

“No, no, I mean yes but…” Alistair groaned in frustration and scrubbed his cheeks. Anders was watching him closely, still disappointed but now looking slightly amused as well. “I’ve never actually thought about… that… so, I don’t really know… I think.”

“You think?” he asked now confused.

“All right,” Alistair said after taking a deep breath. “I spent a good deal of my childhood in a Chantry orphanage. They might preach tolerance to the masses but same sex relationships are definitely frowned on. I never thought to question but just now, in the store before I knew you weren’t what I thought, I was being a typical man and… checking you out.”

“Just because you were admiring my ass doesn’t necessarily mean anything.”

“But it’s a very nice ass…”

“Flattery will get you everywhere,” Anders said with a suggestive little wink.

“Whoa,” Alistair said leaning back and holding his hands up. “I don’t know if I’m even interested yet. Besides that, aren’t you married?”

“Widowed,” he said tapping the ring against his water glass. “Karl would probably be encouraging you if he were a ghost. I’ve had a hard time moving on.”

“Ah,” said Alistair flatly. “I’m… sorry. Again. For assuming… things.”

Anders smiled warmly and leaned forward again. “You’re positively adorable. Why are you single? If you were inclined towards men I’d snatch you up in a heartbeat.”

“I’m too nice,” Alistair said sullenly. “Too old fashioned. Apparently women like meanies who only think with their small head.”

“Well they’re stupid,” Anders said earnestly.

“Umm… What?”

“They have no idea what they’re throwing away. Granted I’ve only known you for about twenty minutes now but I’m pretty impressed.”

Alistair stared at him, his mind racing. This perfect stranger had shown more interest than all the women he’d asked out in the last year combined. Suddenly he was very interested as well despite the fact this stranger was a man. Was it genuine interest or lonely desperation? He had never actually thought about what his preferences might be. As a teen the sisters had assumed that because he was male he would find women appealing and he had never thought to question them.

“How do you know?” Alistair asked slowly. “If you’re gay that is?”

“It doesn’t have to be one or the other,” Anders said. “I like women too but I like men a little more.”

“All right, but… how?”

“Knowing that you were ogling a man, would you go home tonight and think of touching my ass when you jerk off?”

He pictured that moment in the department store, admiring the pleasantly round ass cheeks of who he thought had been a woman. Alistair didn’t think it was quite wanking material but there was still the familiar interested tightening in his gut. “Possibly.”

“Would you be willing to… experiment? That’s how I figured it out.”

“I… don’t know. I umm… I’m not really… very… experienced.”

“A kiss,” Anders said gently. “Right now. If you’re still interested we can go to my place. Don’t worry. I prefer catching so it won’t be too different for you. If you can’t get it up or decide you don’t like it, you leave and we never see each other again. Unless you tell them no one will ever know.”

“A kiss,” said Alistair uncertainly. “Is it really that different?”

Anders rubbed his chin, fingers scraping across the stiff bristles of hair he didn’t shave off that morning. “It’s different.”

Alistair swallowed hard and nodded. Anders leaned forward over the table and Alistair followed his example. He saw Anders smile, felt his hand at the back of his neck, watched him tilt his head and closed his eyes as Anders leaned in a little more. He felt soft lips against his, pressing gently then a little more insistently. Alistair also felt the prickly stubble on his chin as he leaned further in, opening his mouth a little and probing with his tongue. Anders hummed softly and their tongues slid together.

His jeans were getting uncomfortable and Alistair stood, opening his eyes and reaching for the man standing in front of him. Anders filled his vision and Alistair pulled their body’s together, part of himself wondering just what he was doing. It was a small dissenting part and the pleased hum from Anders drowned it out. The kiss deepened further, Anders tongue now exploring his mouth. The hand at his neck slid down to his chest, his other hand joining the first.

Alistair pulled away slightly, his arms around Anders’ waist. He let his hands drift lower at a nod of encouragement. Rubbing his ass produced more pleased hums and Alistair backed him onto the bed behind him. Anders pulled him down between his legs, the skirt stretched taut, and a familiar bulge now clearly visible at his crotch. Curiously Alistair rolled to his side and reached for the elastic waistband of the skirt. With his fingers just underneath he looked to Anders uncertain if he should continue.

“Go ahead,” Anders said softly.

Carefully he pulled down the skirt and the underwear underneath, amazed when his stiff cock sprang free. Anders lifted his hips and pushed at one side, sliding the fabric halfway down his thighs. Tentatively Alistair ran his fingers down the shaft, jerking backwards when his cock twitched.

“It’s all right,” Anders said soothingly pulling him close again. “It does that when it’s interested.”

“I should know that,” Alistair said sheepishly. “Mine does it too.”

“Speaking of yours,” he said reaching for the button on his jeans. “Can I touch too?”

“Yeah. My pants are pretty uncomfortable right now.”

“Let’s fix that then.”

Anders pulled at the button and reached for the zipper while Alistair pushed his skirt and underwear down over his knees. He stood when Anders had them undone and self-consciously pushed his jeans and his boxers down over his hips, his stiff prick jutting out and bouncing as he stepped out of them. Anders licked his lips hungrily and scooted back so that he was lying in the middle of the bed. Alistair crawled over and sat on his feet between Anders spread legs. He bit his lip as Anders rose up on one elbow and wrapped his fingers around it, watching closely as he slowly stroked it.

“You have a very nice cock. I’m not sure if I’d rather have it up my ass or in my mouth.”

“Either way works for me.”

“Ass,” Anders said after a moment of thought. “Just like this. So you can see me.”

Alistair didn’t think he could mistake him for a girl now even if he was on his hands and knees. His hips were too small. Despite that he was still very interested, especially being slowly stroked, but he had no idea how to proceed.

“How does this work?”

“There are condoms in the nightstand and a tube of slick. Make sure you coat your cock good and rub some around my asshole. Then you push your dick into me and we do what comes natural.”

He nodded and stretched for the nightstand. After a few minutes of following directions he was on his knees pressing his cock slowly through the tight ring of Anders’ back passage. Anders held his legs behind his knees, his cock lying stiffly against his stomach.

“You can go a little faster,” Anders said a bit impatiently. “I promise you won’t break me.”

With another sheepish smile Alistair followed orders. His ass was tight around his cock and Alistair let out a long shuddering breath as he leaned over the man beneath him. Anders let go of his legs, draping them over his thighs. He smiled reassuringly and reached for his jaw, rubbing his cheekbones with his thumbs.

“Whenever you’re ready,” said Anders softly.

Alistair nodded, hearing that voice inside asking him what he thought he was doing. Saying that he shouldn’t be aroused at all never mind actually sticking his cock up another man’s ass. He told the voice to shut up and leaned over, seeking his lips as he began rocking his hips. Pleased groans from Anders spurred him on. He didn’t mind the scratchy kisses or the strong hands gripping his body. Alistair sped up as his orgasm loomed near. They were both panting and he watched Anders stroking himself furiously, his feet dug into the mattress and rising to meet his every thrust.

Anders groaned loudly and Alistair felt his muscles clench before seeing the pearly fluid spurting from his cock. He felt his own release begin and his pace stuttered as he gasped and moaned. Still breathing heavily Alistair pulled out and collapsed beside Anders. Unconsciously he scooted closer and gathered the other man in his arms.

“Worth another experiment?” Anders said softly running his fingers through his hair.

“Definitely,” Alistair replied sleepily. “Can I have a nap first?”

“Sounds good.”

He slowly closed his eyes, sated and comfortable, only to open them moments later. Alistair felt his empty bed beside him, wondering at the dream. He pushed off his boxers, not worried that he had achieved orgasm in his sleep again, more curious about the dream and its contents.

*

She was pleased as she drifted away. The sex had been completely unexpected. The innocent one was curious rather than worried and she was glad that she’d chosen the mage. He was helping her more than he realized and she had no intentions of letting him know that. The energy had been sweet and rich. She now knew why. These three men would comfort each other, share pain and rest peacefully without ever knowing why. With more time and patience they would also continue to make the nectar she desired. She would make sure they had the time they needed.


	9. A New Face

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to Shadowfire_Ravenphoenix who made this chapter possible a lot sooner than expected. =)

Alistair sat at the bar, leaning against it with one elbow. A rum and cola sat half full nearby. He’d gone to the bar with a friend hoping he could find the courage to actually hook up with a guy. His friend had assured him this bar was a common place to find other people interested in their own gender. She was currently on the dance floor grinding to the loud music with another woman, which was encouraging. There were still just as many opposite sex couples however. Since there was no real way to tell someone’s preferences, Alistair remained seated sipping his drink and watching. Deep down he knew it was an excuse to avoid the inevitable rejection and possible awkward humiliation.

If he could have found the courage he knew exactly who he’d approach. Sitting at a table nearby with a couple of others was a big blond. Alistair wasn’t sure what it was that intrigued him about this man but his eyes wandered to the table constantly. He’d been caught staring several times, which was a little embarrassing, but so far the man didn’t seem annoyed. He had even smiled and nodded a few times. Alistair had smiled back, positive his face was beet red, but couldn’t bring himself to just go over and talk to him.

The song changed and Alistair watched Mindy make her way over after her dance partner headed in the general direction of the restrooms. She hopped onto the empty stool next to him and leaned back against the bar. Alistair turned slightly, his eyes passing over the blonde and lingering long enough to get another smile. Next to him Mindy snorted.

“Would you stop mooning and just go talk to him,” she said loudly so he could hear over the music.

“I’m not mooning,” he protested. “I’m… oh all right. I’m mooning.”

“So go talk to him,” Mindy said kicking his foot off of the rung around the bottom of the barstool. “You’ll never get a cock up your ass if you just sit here.”

“A little louder please,” Alistair said glaring at her. “I don’t think everyone heard you.”

She smirked wickedly and leaned closer to him. “I’ll yell it if you really want me to.”

“Don’t you dare.” Alistair was fully prepared to tackle her but Mindy just snorted and leaned back again. “Besides, he’s already sent three people away. Why would he talk to me?”

“Maybe he can’t dance,” she said shrugging. “He’s looking at you too.”

“He’s caught me staring,” Alistair said glumly. “Probably wondering what’s wrong with me.”

“Alistair,” Mindy moaned in exasperation. “If you don’t go talk to him you’ll never know what might have happened.”

“He says no and I go home disappointed?”

“You…I’m going to give you a hand. You’ll be old and gray if I leave it up to you.”

“Mindy!”

Alistair watched in horror as she dropped off of the stool and strode purposefully towards his table. She stopped next to the man and leaned over slightly. He looked up at her, nodding briefly at whatever she said. Mindy pointed at him and the man looked over, their eyes meeting for a second before he turned towards the bar red faced. He was considering making a break for the door but that opportunity passed much too quickly. The man he’d been watching all night sat on the stool Mindy had vacated, turned slightly to see him, smiling.

“Hello,” Alistair said sheepishly. “Welcome to High School.”

“I believe your friend means well,” he said after a brief chuckle. “Unlike cruel classmates. I was going to come and talk to you anyway.”

“Really?” said Alistair in shock. The man smirked as he nodded and Alistair grabbed his glass to hide another flush, this one definitely not from embarrassment. “I’m Alistair. I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable.”

“Not at all,” he replied easily. “I’m Cullen.”

“So…,” he said scrambling for something to say. “What do you normally do when you’re not at a bar being awkwardly stared at all night?”

“Generally I stay home and watch movies or read. Call my sister occasionally and get scolded for not calling more often.”

Alistair felt a little pang of longing but chuckled anyway. He was used to people around him talking about siblings or parents, most unaware that he had neither. “And what brought you here?”

“Something different. You?”

“I was hoping to meet the perfect guy. Having your friend break the ice for you isn’t the best first impression.”

“There are worse ones,” Cullen said smiling. “You’re not likely to meet anyone worthwhile in a bar however. In my experience people come to these places with only a few goals in mind.”

“Getting smashed or getting laid,” Alistair said with a shrug. “Usually both. You seem pretty perfect though.”

Cullen smirked again and Alistair hoped this guy wasn’t just looking for a one night stand. “The exception that proves the rule.”

Emboldened by this small success Alistair gestured at the door and said, “Are you hungry? We could go somewhere a bit less loud.”

“I could do with some coffee,” he said nodding as he stood. “What about your friend?”

“I think she’s going to end up at someone else’s house,” Alistair said scanning the dancefloor. He found her across the room with her dance partner. They were pressed close together, hands wandering to inappropriate places and their lips locked together. “Or perhaps the bathroom. She definitely doesn’t need me interrupting.”

“Goodness,” Cullen said following his gaze. “Certainly not.”

“I’ll text her later. There’s a Penny’s Diner just down the road. They have the best coffee.”

Alistair grinned and led the way through the crowd. He pushed the door open and relished the cool air and sudden quiet. They made small talk as they walked down the sidewalk, exchanging safe information like jobs and favorite foods. Cullen was easy to talk to and Alistair found himself talking about the family he didn’t have while sipping at hot coffee and pushing fries around on his plate.

“You’ve done well for yourself,” Cullen said evenly. “You haven’t turned to drugs or crime. A lot of other orphans aren’t nearly as well off.”

“I suppose,” he said shrugging. “Half of my friends are married and most of those left have a steady significant other but here I am. Still single. I’m going to be that weird old man who talks to himself and shakes his cane at anyone who steps on his grass.”

“Don’t give up,” said Cullen sympathetically.

“Please don’t tell me that special someone is out there,” Alistair groaned. “I get that enough from girls who think I’m too nice to date.”

“I haven’t found that special someone either,” Cullen said. “A bad relationship early in my career put me off for several years. I’m still not really looking.”

“I suppose that means we can’t do this again?”

“I wouldn’t mind a movie or a proper dinner. Just because I’m not looking doesn’t mean I don’t see a potential partner when I stumble across one.”

“That sounds hopeful,” said Alistair grinning. “I’d like that a lot.”

“Tomorrow at six? If you give me your number I’ll call before coming over.”

*

She drifted away slightly disappointed. There was interest between the innocent one and the haunted one though. Perhaps she could speed up the process somehow. She thought about how she might get them into each other’s arms faster as she searched for the mage again. His disappearance was troubling since he was often the source of the sweet energy she craved. The haunted man and the innocent one would produce the same type of rich energy if she were patient. She sighed as she moved off, searching through the dreams of others for her meal.


	10. Time and Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big time jump dead ahead.
> 
> Random Facts: Cullen is the oldest, mid thirties. Anders is in the middle, late twenties. Alistair is the youngest, mid twenties. Amell is somewhere between Cullen and Anders in age.

Anders opened his eyes and struggled to stay awake. He slowly kicked away the blanket and sheet wincing at the soreness in his ass that hadn’t been there when he went to bed. He wanted to sleep it off but he also wanted Alistair behind him, Cullen in front of him. They were likely in their own beds however, unaware of how they were being toyed with.

He had begun to wonder months ago when these two men started showing up regularly in his dreams. It wasn’t quite as constant then, maybe once a week. Now it happened every other night at the very least. Anders knew something was wrong the first time he’d dreamed of both of them at the same time. Although he kept a constant vigil he hadn’t seen the spirit that had marked him since he’d foolishly let her fuck him. Only a Fade spirit could affect the dreams of mortals. Anders also hadn’t seen hide or hair of another Fade being, spirit or demon, since his anniversary. She had to be controlling their dreams.

Even though the spirit set the scene and put them into it, he had to claim some responsibility for the situation they found themselves in. Anders had always been a flirt. He had never cheated on Karl, in the waking world or in his dreams, but flirted constantly with nearly anyone. After Karl’s death that part of himself had disappeared. In the waking world he still didn’t flirt very often. He hadn’t been ready for another relationship. In his dreams however he was as flirty as he’d ever been. Cullen and Alistair had responded. She had obviously liked the results. It was possible both of these men were marked like he was. Anders didn’t know for certain. As many times as he’d seen their naked bodies he hadn’t found anything out of the ordinary.

Besides the fact he didn’t like being played with, the biggest problem Anders now had were the feelings he’d developed for these two men. He didn’t know how factual any of their conversations were or if these men were even aware of his existence. Anders thought they both lived in Denerim but it was just as possible that they didn’t. It was heartbreaking to think they might not know him outside of the Fade. Ultimately it didn’t matter how he felt. These shared dreams had to stop but he didn’t know how to accomplish it.

Anders sat up and slowly made his way to the upstairs bathroom. He flipped the light switch and squinted in the sudden glare. When his eyes adjusted he gripped the edge of the sink and stared at his reflection frowning. On his neck in the soft spot where it met his shoulder a bruise was forming. He clearly remembered Alistair latched on to him in that spot, sucking, kissing, licking and sucking some more. He touched the red irritated skin and slowly smiled.

Where ever she took them, however she accomplished it in that moment it was really happening. He had always wondered why he woke sore when he took both of them. This was the first time he’d been visibly marked however. They likely thought, as he had, that these were unusually vivid dreams. Waking up with spunk in your shorts was only odd when you considered all of them were well past their teens. This hickey proved otherwise.

If they started waking up with remnants of their erotic dreams hopefully they would start questioning. The spirit had been careful not to reveal anything to him that might lead him to their physical bodies. Both of them had been to this very house multiple times however. If he could actually see them, together they might be able to figure out how to stop this without the spirit knowing their plans.

*

Cullen’s spare time was now spent searching for the two men that kept showing up in his dreams. Because he’d spent many years of his life as a police officer and had dated a mage, he knew more about the Fade than most mundane citizens. There was nothing normal about the consistency of his dreams or the way he still remembered parts of them long after he’d slept and woke again. He suspected demonic influence. The other two were likely victims of the same demon. He didn’t think Anders had a hand in tying them to this demon somehow despite the fact he was a mage. What he remembered of Anders didn’t indicate any sort of deception.

He was extremely frustrated however. In the beginning there was talk but now there was more moaning than anything resembling a conversation. A lot of those earlier conversations were extremely fuzzy from time and not thinking they would be important. Cullen knew they lived in Denerim and that neither of them were originally from the city. He couldn’t remember where Alistair had grown up but knew he’d been in a Chantry orphanage for a good bit of his childhood. Anders had spent quite a bit his childhood at the orphanage associated with Kinloch University. Cullen hoped that if he could find a trace of their past it would lead him to where they are now or give him an idea of where to start looking.

By finding them he hoped they could figure out what was actually going on and fix it. Then they could deal with each other. If the dream last night was anything to go by they had all become rather attached to each other. He couldn’t remember any of them completely but he did remember what he felt for the other two. It was also easy for him to see that his affection was returned in spades.

Anders trusted them completely. Taking both him and Alistair at the same time stretched him to his limit. That he wanted them to push him to that edge, confident they would stop if he said to, revealed quite a bit. It was obvious in the way he simply curled up between them, comfortable and exhausted. Alistair wore his heart on his sleeve. He was eager but considerate, loving and trusting. Cullen worried about both of them but he worried for Alistair a little more. Afterwards he always clung tightly to them, almost like he was afraid of losing them. Waking up in his bed alone must be wearing away at his mind.

Unable to get back to sleep after he woke Cullen had sat at his computer looking through public records. Extremely frustrated with his fruitless search he turned off his laptop and dressed. Concern ate away at his ability to think and he had to clear his mind. The demon never gave them enough time after they had performed for it. He grabbed his gym bag and stepped out of his apartment. Normally he didn’t work out this early but he knew the gym would be open. Not knowing what his work schedule might be like he’d purposely chosen a gym that was open twenty-four hours a day. The physical activity would help calm him.

*

Alistair was starting to question his sanity. He had not one but two boyfriends and he could only see them when he was asleep. There was no one he trusted enough to tell this crazy story to. Were they real people that he’d seen once or twice and started fantasizing about? The erotic dreams were too vivid to be a product of his sex starved mind though. He always woke up in that post orgasmic haze with globs of semen cooling in his boxers as well as a sore ass the first few times he’d been adventurous enough to let Cullen stick his cock up there.

It was because of the dreams that the locker room was now a slightly uncomfortable place. He enjoyed the dream sex too much for it to be a weird inconsistency. Keeping his eyes to himself so that he wouldn’t pop a boner at the worst possible moment was challenging. After the first dream with Anders he’d gone to the mall and sat in the food court for hours with an instruction manual open on the table in front of him. Instead of reading he surreptitiously watched the people going by, both men and women, just to see if the guys were as fascinating as the girls. They had been.

Shyness had prevented him from exploring this new desire at first. As things progressed in his sleep he had no desire to explore it with someone who wasn’t Anders or Cullen. Now he was getting plenty of sex but nothing else that normally went along with it. He wanted the talking, the holding hands, going to a movie and having a nice dinner somewhere afterwards. Since he had no idea if his dream boyfriends were real never mind actually interested in him, he stayed home drank beer and watched TV trying not to think about it.

His sleep was beginning to suffer. Alistair hadn’t been able to go back to sleep after his semi-nightly romp for most of a week. Utterly exhausted he dragged himself through his Friday morning routine. He stood in the shower after his work out for a while, letting the hot water run over him hoping it would wake him up a little more. Disappointed and still sleepy he washed up quickly and shut the water off. Grabbing a towel from the large stack he soaked up most of the water and wrapped it around his waist before leaving the showers for the dressing area of the locker room.

Through a huge yawn he saw that he no longer had the locker room to himself. The man was sitting on a bench opposite him and he watched as the stranger pulled off his T-shirt and stood. Alistair was about to turn to his locker so that he wouldn’t feel like a lecher when his jeans went down but noticed something that stopped him in his tracks. On his right shoulder, just above the triangular blade of bone, was a small pink heart. He stepped quietly closer, hearing the sound of his zipper in the deathly silent room. It was an exact match to the mysterious little heart on his thigh.

“Excuse me,” Alistair said politely. “Could you tell me…”

At the sound of his voice the man whipped around so fast Alistair was a little afraid he’d fall. His eyes were wide; his eyebrows straining to reach his hairline and his mouth open in shock. When Alistair realized he knew the man words died on his tongue and his jaw dropped to the floor in amazed disbelief. The yellowish blonde hair, the scar on his upper lip, soft brown eyes, the lines and planes of his carefully sculpted body, Alistair knew them well.

“It’s you,” Alistair said in a small voice. “You’re real.”

A grin spread quickly and his eyes lit up in excitement. “Alistair!” he exclaimed joyfully. He stepped over the bench and crossed the distance between them in two quick strides. “You were so close this whole time.”

“And you know me.” Alistair’s voice trembled a little. “I’m not crazy.”

Strong hands gripped his shoulders and Cullen’s expression became one of concern. “Of course I know you. I’ve been looking for you for weeks now.”

“Maker,” he whispered leaning forward until their foreheads touched. Alistair brought his hands up and took a deep shuddering breath as he tentatively cupped Cullen’s jaw. “You’re really real.”

Cullen tilted his head and their lips met in a brief but chaste kiss before he wrapped his arms around Alistair’s shoulders. “I’m so glad I’ve finally found you,” he said quietly.

Alistair allowed himself a moment to enjoy the actual feeling of this man he’d been dreaming about for months before attempting to pull himself together. He took a deep breath and pulled away slightly, enough to see him but not out of arm’s length. Cullen watched, his hands now gripping Alistair’s shoulders. Alistair moved his hands to grip Cullen’s arms.

“If you’re real,” Alistair said glad his voice wasn’t wavering. “Then Anders is real too.”

“I believe he lives here in Denerim,” Cullen said softly. “We have to find him.”

“You need to see something first,” said Alistair reluctantly breaking his grip.

He moved a little closer to the nearby bench and pulled the towel from around his waist. Cullen frowned as he put his left leg up. He took a breath to speak but whatever he’d planned on saying came out in a little puff of breath as Alistair moved aside his junk revealing the little pink heart on his inner thigh.

“Andraste preserve us,” Cullen said softly after a moment. “We need to talk.”

“I’ll use up a sick day,” Alistair said as he put his foot back on the floor.

“Let’s hurry,” he said grimly. “There’s little time to lose.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you think I've neglected to show the beginning of Alistair and Cullen's feelings you're absolutely right. I think there does need to be a chapter dedicated to these two but my muse is being horrifically stubborn. I keep drawing a big ole blank. When my muse decides to cooperate I will add the chapter in later but I don't want this to stagnate so I'm moving on with the rest.


	11. What's Next?

Cullen set his keys on the coffee table and dropped his gym bag next to his couch. Alistair stood in the doorway to his apartment looking around in wonder. After a minute he stepped inside and shut the door behind him. Cullen sunk down at his kitchen table and watched him slowly walk around the living room.

“It’s weird,” Alistair said running his hand along the back of the couch. “I’ve been here so many times but I’ve never _really_ been here.” He pointed at the door to the immediate right of the entrance and then the door a few feet down the wall. “That’s the bathroom and that’s the bedroom.”

“If you want to change out of that uniform your welcome to,” Cullen said softly. “I’m sure anything in my closet would fit.”

“I’m fine,” he replied with a small smile. It faltered and he sighed as he slowly walked through the kitchen. “Well. Sort of fine.” He opened a cabinet and pulled out a glass. “All the way I kept pinching myself. You know, make sure I’m awake.”

“If we were asleep I’m sure we’d be naked already,” said Cullen ruefully watching as he filled the glass from the kitchen sink. “Our dreams are being manipulated.”

“By whatever put those hearts on us?” he asked.

Cullen nodded and Alistair shuffled over to the table. He watched his Adam’s apple bob as he drained the water before pulling out a chair next to him. Alistair sunk into it and set the glass in front of him, sighing wearily.

“Not that I really want to know but… what exactly did put those hearts on us?” Alistair said leaning back in his chair.

“A demon.”

“Dear Maker. What can we do?”

“The first thing we need to do is find Anders.” Cullen pulled his laptop over and flipped it open. “He may know more about how to rid us of this… menace. You’ve been with him by yourself?”

“Yes,” said Alistair leaning forward. With his elbows on the table he scrubbed his face through a yawn. “The first dream I had with him I insulted him and we ended up in bed together.”

“You insulted him?” Cullen said curiously.

“The skirts,” Alistair said with a sheepish smile. “I was lost… somewhere. I came up behind him and assumed he was a woman.”

“And you ended up having sex?” Cullen smiled and shook his head in amusement as he hit the power button. “Dreams are funny things.”

“I think I impressed him somehow. I can’t remember. That was the first time I’d ever considered having sex with a man.”

Cullen looked over at him and frowned. “You were always pretty enthusiastic with me.”

“I’d already been with him a few times,” he said shrugging. “By the time you started showing up in my dreams I’d already gone through the doubting and searching and decided I really did like it despite the weird way it was brought to my attention.”

Still frowning Cullen brought up the document he’d been putting everything that he could remember about Anders. There were several disturbing things about what Alistair had just said but he focused on the first thing he noticed. He had also dreamed of Anders a few times before Alistair had begun showing up. Anders was very forward in all of those dreams at the beginning. Cullen couldn’t imagine him being any different with Alistair. Why had the demon put him and Alistair together at all if it was getting what it wanted from Anders and either of them?

“Karl,” Alistair said suddenly.

“Pardon?” Cullen said looking over at him.

“The dead husband,” Alistair said pointing at the screen. “I don’t remember a last name but his first is Karl.”

“Spelled with a C or a K?” Cullen asked moving the cursor on the screen.

“Not sure,” said Alistair after a moment.

“Is there anything else you can remember?”

“Probably.” Another yawn cut into his sentence and Cullen stifled one himself. “I’m so blasted tired though. It’s hard to think. I couldn’t go back to sleep last night. Or the night before that. All week really.”

“I couldn’t sleep either.” Cullen sighed and leaned back. As much as he wanted to pool information he too was exhausted. “Perhaps we should take a nap.”

“Sleeping isn’t safe,” Alistair said in a small voice. “Not anymore.”

Cullen took his hand and said, “I know. You won’t wake up alone this time.”

“Thank the Maker for that,” Alistair whispered.

He led the way to the bedroom and both of them crawled on top of the covers. Cullen fell asleep on his side with Alistair curled up in front of him. For a few hours there was only dreamless darkness. When he woke Alistair was still asleep. Cullen carefully extracted himself and quietly found his cell phone. He called in sick and lay back on the bed next to Alistair. Much like he’d said earlier, Cullen was also half afraid they were dreaming and had no desire to part with the younger man just yet. With that done he laced his hands behind his head and thought while he listened to Alistair’s deep even breathing.

Thinking back to the dreams that had started this mess he tried to find a pattern. There had to be a reason they had been only paired with Anders to begin with. After a while he realized there were two roughly three week periods when Anders had been inexplicably absent. The first time had been right around when Alistair had first appeared. The second had been the weeks previous to their encounter last night.

Cullen wracked his brain trying to think of a reason the demon would give Anders a three week break and not them. When he thought of their work schedules it suddenly made sense. Alistair worked the day shift. He worked the swing shift. Whatever Anders’ job was the shifts he worked must rotate. The weeks he’d been absent Anders must have been working the graveyard shift and wouldn’t have been asleep when he and Alistair were. Cullen would have to check with Alistair to be completely sure but it was the only plausible explanation.

This little epiphany also raised a few questions along with what Alistair had told him earlier. The demon had marked them for its own unfathomable reasons but seemed more interested in Anders. Had Anders been marked as well or had it been holding them over his head somehow? He wasn’t sure how a mage who was certified to work in the general population could allow himself to be marked in such a manner but it was theoretically possible. Mages were taught several methods to protect themselves from demonic influence but he knew from experience accidents still happened from time to time. Fingers brushed his side, breaking his train of thought, and Cullen jerked away with a little gasp.

“Hmm,” Alistair said sleepily. “Is someone ticklish?”

Before he could reply Alistair was straddling his legs, his fingers fluttering over Cullen’s side and stomach, grinning happily down at him. Cullen tried to stifle his giggles and catch his hands. They tousled on the bed together, each of them smiling and happy, their thoughts on the moment and not what brought them to that moment. After a struggle Cullen ended up straddling Alistair’s thighs pinning his wrists to the bed.

Still a little out of breath Cullen leaned down, tilting his head slightly, and pressed their lips together. Alistair responded, his eye lids drifting mostly shut while his lips parted, inviting Cullen to deepen the kiss. His eyes were now hooded as he took the invitation, their tongues sliding together in a familiar dance despite the fact that this was their first real kiss. Alistair hummed happily and wiggled his wrists. Cullen let his hands go. He felt them tugging at his jeans, pulling at the button and reluctantly broke the kiss.

“I don’t have anything we need,” Cullen said softly.

“We have options,” Alistair said smirking.

Cullen smiled and leaned down for another kiss as Alistair continued to extract his stiffening cock from his boxers. He rose up on his knees and shuffled backwards humming as Alistair gripped his cock. Quickly he freed Alistair from his trousers, pausing only to pull them and his boxers down slightly.

“Unbutton your shirt,” Cullen said as he leaned back over him. “Then hold us together.”

Alistair quickly worked the buttons, stretching up to reach him. Cullen leaned down and thrust his tongue through his lips. When he felt hands around his cock, Alistair’s cock pressed tightly to the underside he began thrusting shallowly as Alistair stroked them. Tension coiled and he groaned. Alistair sped and panted. Cullen felt him jerk, heard his moan and shifted his weight to one hand. Alistair’s rhythm stuttered as he came and Cullen tapped his hand. He stroked himself furiously, listening to Alistair pant and feeling a hand at his shoulder. With a grunt Cullen added to the mess on his stomach and rose to sit on Alistair’s thighs panting.

Alistair ran a finger through the semen on his chest, suddenly tense, frowning a little.

“What is it?” Cullen asked gently taking his hand.

“Are we… umm… you know… together?”

Cullen squeezed his hand and smiled. “I’ve finally found you and I’m not going to let you go. No matter how this began… I care for you and Anders with all my heart.”

His bright smile made the weeks of frustrated searching worth the effort. Alistair rose up on his elbows and said, “Let’s go find him then.”


	12. Planning

She thought it a little odd the dreams of two of her marked men were so close to each other. They had never been so close before but what mortals did when they weren’t dreaming sometimes left them in different places entirely. She chose the largest of them and pulled him to the mage, descending eagerly into their shared dream to feast.

*

Anders held in a sigh when he found himself walking hand in hand with Cullen down the deserted path of a heavily wooded area. It would be next week at least before the spirit gave him a rest. Tomorrow he’d be with Alistair and the day after that Cullen again. He didn’t want to think about why she found his sexual energy particularly tasty. This did give him an opportunity to suck as many bruises on them as he could possibly get away with however.

“Here we are,” Cullen said softly leading him up to a small clearing.

There was a blanket spread on the ground with a basket sitting on it. Anders allowed himself to be pulled down, determined to enjoy the only time he got to spend with a man he was hopelessly in love with despite the urgency he felt to end that time. She had chosen one of his tighter skirts and he concentrated, changing it to a light green cotton one that billowed out to his ankles. Cullen didn’t notice the small difference as Anders settled it around him more comfortably.

“What’s the occasion, love?” Anders asked as Cullen dug through the basket.

“Just a day away,” he said smiling. “You’ve been working such long hours lately I thought you could use some time to unwind.”

“It’s too bad Alistair couldn’t come,” said Anders watching him closely.

Normally when he dreamed of one the other wasn’t mentioned. The dreams the spirit pulled all three of them into usually had very little plot. They were dumped naked in a room painted in pastels with a strange fluffy floor. There was a sweet scent in the air that he was positive made all three of them super horny to make sure they did what she wanted. Anders had no idea if they shared dreams with each other but had noticed the familiarity they had with each other. It was a dangerous bid for important information to mention Alistair with her no doubt watching from the safety of a tree top but he had to know what else was going on.

“He wanted to come,” Cullen said apologetically. “But he couldn’t get the day off.”

“I guess we’ll have to make it up to him later,” Anders said leaning forward.

He ran his hand up Cullen’s thigh and was a little surprised when he put his hand on top, stopping his steady slide up. Cullen looked up and Anders saw him frowning slightly as he looked around. His gaze finally settled on Anders and he was completely amazed to see understanding in his eyes. Anders quickly pulled his hand out from underneath his and crawled into his lap. His hands circled Anders waist and he was still frowning as Anders started unbuttoning his shirt.

“Keep going,” Anders said softly. “She’s watching.”

“Does the demon always watch?” Cullen whispered.

His hands found their way underneath Anders’ shirt and he couldn’t help but arch into them. “She does.” Anders flipped open his shirt and arched to kiss his jaw, his hands unerringly finding his nipples.

“I found him Anders.” Cullen gripped his hips, stopping the slow grind Anders hadn’t been aware of. “We’re trying to find you.”

“You’ve both been to my house,” said Anders pushing him over. “I’ll try to steer our dreams there. For now shut up and fuck me. We can’t raise her suspicions until we’re ready.”

Cullen responded by pulling Anders down on top of him. He felt hands slip under the waist of his skirt and cup his ass. Their lips met and he moaned into Cullen’s mouth, struggling to keep his wits for a few more minutes. He took control, thrusting his tongue through parted lips before pulling away slightly. Anders kissed along his jaw and down the side of his neck, picking one spot and sucking hard.

“Anders,” Cullen said in a strained whisper. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to help you remember,” Anders said softly against his neck.

He continued to suck until he was positive there would be a large and very noticeable hickey. The second Anders started kissing to soothe the irritated spot Cullen neatly reversed their positions. Anders let his brain fizzle and simply enjoyed hands pressing his wrists tightly to the ground and squirmed under an onslaught of kisses to his bare torso.

As he always did, Cullen tortured him with gentle preparation. It had been easy to get Alistair to just stuff him full and fuck him silly but Cullen did things at his own pace and in his own way. He always started with his fingers, gentle thrusts and soft kisses. Anders was panting and moaning in turns before Cullen finally pushed into him. He hardly felt the stretch of his thick cock but after the previous night that was a small blessing.

With his hands once more pinned to the ground and his legs hooked over Cullen’s shoulders, Anders reveled in his semi-helpless position and Cullen pounding into him. He listened to his own moans and Cullen’s even panting feeling the steady build-up of tension in his gut. Anders clenched his hands into fists and tightened the muscles around Cullen’s cock. His grunt was satisfying as was the increase in speed. Without his cock being touched once, Anders felt that sudden release.

The pleasure didn’t stop right away as Cullen kept up his quick hard thrusts, chasing his own orgasm. Anders didn’t feel like moving when he finally grunted, his pace stuttering to a stop. Gently Cullen pulled out and lowered his legs to the ground, draped over his thighs. With their cocks lying together on his stomach, Cullen’s still encased in a condom, he leaned over Anders and pressed their lips together.

“I promise we’ll find you,” Cullen said softy against his lips.

“Hurry,” Anders whispered wrapping his arms around Cullen only to find that he was hugging his body pillow moments later.

“Just a few more minutes,” he yelled angrily to the empty room.

Anders hugged his pillow tightly and fought back tears of frustrated joy. They knew him and they were looking for him.

*

Cullen jerked awake, disoriented in the sudden darkness. The person he was clinging to was too big to be Anders. Alistair slept peacefully on as Cullen rolled and flipped on the lamp at his bedside. Ignoring the sticky wetness in his boxers he grabbed the pen and notepad on the nightstand. He scribbled furiously for a few minutes, writing down everything he could remember while it was fresh in his mind. Cullen set them down on the nightstand and sighed heavily as he grabbed the wash cloth neatly folded next to it. After taking care of the mess in his shorts he tossed the wash cloth at his dirty laundry and flipped the lamp off. He lay back down on his side and scooted as close to Alistair as he could. Eventually he fell back asleep.

The sun was well over the horizon when he woke. Alistair wasn’t in the bedroom and Cullen took the notepad with him as he shuffled into his living room. The smell of coffee drew him to the kitchen and he dropped the pad by his laptop which was already on and opened to the document he wanted. He still didn’t see Alistair but noticed the bathroom door was closed. As he pulled a mug from a cabinet he heard the toilet flush followed by running water. Cullen turned and leaned on the counter sipping at the hot coffee.

“Good morning,” Alistair said cheerfully after he stepped out of the bathroom.

He was wearing a pair of Cullen’s sweat pants and a plain white undershirt. Neither of them had wanted him to leave last night after hours of sharing their dreams and recording the important information.

“Did your dream reveal anything that might help?” he asked as he crossed the living room.

“I wrote the down what I remembered last night,” Cullen said frowning. “How did you know? You didn’t wake up.”

“It’s a little obvious,” Alistair said rubbing his neck. “Maybe you should have a look in the mirror.”

Still frowning Cullen set his cup on the table and headed for his bathroom. He stood in front of his mirror staring at the bruise on his neck. Alistair leaned in the doorway watching calmly as he touched the discolored skin. He clearly remembered Anders sucking on that very spot because it was odd. Anders had a lot of submissive tendencies despite his demanding attitude. Cullen didn’t like leaving his partner with marks of any sort but he would have bet a month’s pay Anders enjoyed receiving those marks, not making them. None of it explained why he still had a hickey he’d received in a dream.

“How is this possible?” Cullen asked in confusion.

“I don’t know,” Alistair said. “I can’t say I’m surprised though.” Cullen looked sharply over at him. “You don’t bottom do you.”

“Not very often,” he replied a little more confused.

“The first time I bottomed I was pretty sore when I woke up. The second and third times too. Anders must have been walking funny yesterday.”

“That’s disturbing,” said Cullen grimly. “If these stay then the demon could do any number of things to any of us.”

“That is scary,” Alistair said seriously. “What do you remember?”

“Last night was different,” Cullen said moving past him. “Perhaps because we spent all day talking about them I realized I was dreaming."

He handed Alistair the notepad and sat at the table in front of his laptop. While Alistair read the notepad Cullen skimmed the document for anything about Anders’ house. When he found the right section he read through the notes carefully.

“It doesn’t know we know,” Alistair said setting the pad on the table. “It’s too bad we can’t just give him an address.”

“If either of us realized that would be too obvious. The demon must watch him more because he’s a mage. They don’t dream quite the same way we do.”

Alistair sat down next to him and sipped from his coffee. “So what’s the plan? There have to be hundreds of two story gray houses in Denerim.”

“Anders said he’d steer us to his house as much as possible. Keep a notepad and pen by your bed. Write down everything no matter how odd or inconsequential. Hopefully we can find something that will lead us to him.”


	13. Persistence Pays Off

Alistair crept down the street with the window wide open and the heater on full blast. It was a clear and cold evening with plenty of light from a full moon but he had a flashlight on the seat next to him anyway. Fresh snow from the previous evening glittered everywhere in the soft moon light but he was paying no attention to the beauty around him. His eyes scanned the houses on the left side of Oakwood Avenue looking for the numbers.

“Fifty-two,” he muttered. The next house slowly came into his field of vision and he found the number on the overhang above the front door. “Blast. Fifty-six.”

This was how Alistair had spent his evenings for nearly two weeks. Cullen had divided the city into four sections after they had eliminated the rich neighborhoods and the extremely poor neighborhoods. He searched during the day when Alistair worked and he searched at night when Cullen worked. Their work schedules didn’t mesh very well, Cullen having already gone by the time Alistair got off but they texted each other constantly. The search was daunting but both of them kept stubbornly at it.

Gradually Anders had refined their search. He lived on one of the tree streets; his house number ended in a four, a noisy dog lived on the street behind him and a few other small details that would have helped more if it weren’t the dead of winter. Their dreams seemed to be permanently stuck in early summer when this had all began. The snow had hindered them more than once, forcing them inside while a storm raged.

After yesterday’s storm the main streets were fairly clear but the side streets were still treacherous. Cullen had stopped by the shop before Alistair had gotten off and they switched vehicles. Alistair was glad for his pick-up with its four wheel drive. Several sand bags in the bed added weight to the rear and he’d hardly slid at all. If he were in his old beast he’d have been stuck two streets ago.

“And that’s the end of Oakwood,” he muttered scowling at the T shaped intersection.

He looked at the street sign and checked it with a list under the flashlight. Alistair pulled onto Cedar Way and continued the search. After three blocks he pulled up in front of 2584, put the truck in park and pushed in the emergency brake. Alistair grabbed the flashlight and stood on the sidewalk, looking over the dark house in the moonlight. It looked vaguely familiar but so had the dozen other houses he’d stopped at.

The siding was dark gray when he turned the flashlight on it. Alistair carefully made his way up the slick walk and brushed snow off of the bottom step of a small front porch. Skeletal bushes flanked the staircase and Alistair looked at them hoping they would have pale yellow flowers when it wasn’t freezing cold. A small path had been shoveled from the front door to the steps, the extra piled up to either side. He saw a swing to his left and crunched through snow to brush off one of the covered arms. It was painted a soft yellow, hopefully a match for the flowers.

“Maker,” Alistair said softly. “If you give a damn about us puny mortals at all please let this be his house.”

Alistair moved carefully back onto the cleared section and stomped his boots free of snow. He knocked on the door after a quick look at the time on his cell phone. Long seconds passed and he knocked again. The house remained still and silent. Swearing to himself he turned and stopped at the top of the short steps up to the porch. A vehicle came to a stop in the middle of the street and after a moment the passenger door opened.

“I’ll be fine. Thanks Mike,” the person said before slamming the door.

Grinning, Alistair came down the steps and watched the man pass through his headlights. He was as bundled up as Alistair was, his heavy coat either black or navy blue with a white and red patch over one breast pocket. His dark colored pants, almost surely the same color as his coat, had pockets all down his thighs. Underneath the knit cap on the man’s head he was certain would be sandy blonde hair most likely pulled back in a tail.

“Can I help you?” he said stopping halfway up his own walk.

“You look really different wearing pants,” Alistair said cheerfully taking a couple of steps closer.

“Alistair?” Anders said in a shocked whisper.

“The one and only,” he said shining the flashlight in his own face.

He heard a noise from Anders, something high pitched that might have been word but he didn’t have the time to figure it out. Alistair found himself struggling to stay upright with a hundred and seventy pounds of mage slamming into him when he slid on the ice coated concrete. They twirled around in a ridiculous flurry of arms and legs before finally ending up in the snow piled on the front lawn.

“Ouch,” Alistair muttered. “You should shovel your walk a little better.”

“I haven’t had time,” Anders said softly from on top of him. “Maker’s Breath I’m awake. It’s freezing and I’m awake. You’re really here.”

Alistair wrapped his arms around Anders and held in an amused chuckle as his face was peppered with kisses.

“Are you all right Anders?” a worried voice called from the sidewalk.

“Fantastic,” Anders called back. “Come and meet my boyfriend Mike.”

Two weeks ago that statement would have freaked him out badly. Having spent as much time as possible with Cullen and enduring good natured ribbing at the shop over his older boyfriend it simply felt right. Alistair let him go and they struggled to their feet. He hung back a little wincing at the sudden soreness in his back. Anders brushed at his legs as the man who’d dropped him off walked through the snow in the front yard.

“Boyfriend huh,” he said grinning as he stuck out his hand. “Mike Epstein. Anders and I ride together a lot.”

“Alistair. Pleased to meet you.” They shook hands and Anders moved closer to him, now brushing at the snow covering his backside.

“How did you manage to keep him from everyone?” Mike asked curiously.

“I _can_ actually keep a secret you know,” Anders replied with a smirk. “I wasn’t ready and he’s been away.”

“I’m looking forward to this story,” said Mike still grinning. “I’d better go though. My wife is probably worried. Do you need me to pick you up?”

“I’ll call and let you know. See you in a couple of days Mike,” Anders said waving.

Mike waved and turned around, trudging back to his car still running in the middle of the street. Anders wrapped his arms around Alistair and pulled away at his gasp.

“Where does it hurt?” he asked suddenly serious.

“My back,” Alistair said. “The ground is hard and you’re heavy.”

“I’m sorry,” Anders said sheepishly moving around him. “It’s been… hard.”

“Believe me I understand,” said Alistair softly. “I thought I was going mad before I stumbled across Cullen.” He felt warmth along his spine and the ache slowly disappeared. “That feels much better.”

“One of the perks of dating a mage doctor,” said Anders wrapping his arms around Alistair from behind. “I’m afraid to let you out of my sight.”

“You won’t have to for a while. Why don’t you grab a few things and we’ll go see Cullen at the mall. He’ll want to know and I’m sure he won’t mind us camping out at his apartment for a few days.”

“Yes. I definitely want to see Cullen too.”

Alistair looked around the living room experiencing that same weird déjà vu he’d had in Cullen’s apartment. It only took Anders a few minutes to stuff clothes in a bag along with his toothbrush and toothpaste. They were in the truck less than ten minutes later, Anders helping him navigate the quickest route through the streets. He sat in the middle of the old fashioned bench seat, his hand resting on Alistair’s thigh the whole way. In the parking lot Alistair texted Cullen. Found him. Meet us in the food court.

Anders had a death grip on his hand as they made their way over the slick parking lot. He didn’t let go when they hit the bright warmth of the large building. After a short trip through crowded hallways they scanned the food court. Anders saw him first and yanked Alistair along behind him as he ran. Much like he had, Cullen staggered back a few steps at the impact. Alistair extracted his hand as Cullen embraced Anders, moving behind him and wrapping his arms as far around them both as he could. He listened to Cullen’s soothing murmur, Anders sandwiched between them.


	14. Winding Down

Anders left the door open when he’d gone in to change clothes. Alistair was in the living room and he had to resist the urge to peek out at him. He listened closely to him moving around however. Cullen’s apartment was mostly neat and sparsely decorated. It suited his serious demeanor. He’d spent a bit of time wandering curiously, a touch envious of how well Alistair knew his way around.

Sitting on the bed Anders ran his hand across the peach colored bedspread, still amazed that he was actually in Cullen’s apartment with Alistair rambling around in the other room. Anders took a deep breath determined not to lose control like he had in the mall. Neither of them seemed to mind his girlish weeping. He didn’t want to chase either of them away by seeming weak however. The last few months had been hard on all of them but his psyche had been stretched thin, knowing she was keeping him clueless and agonizing over his feelings for two men that he’d never really met.

He took another deep breath and pulled his duffle bag onto his lap. Anders pulled out a T-shirt and a loose comfortable skirt. With slightly shaky hands he unbuttoned his work shirt and pulled off the dark blue undershirt, tossing them against a wall. Alistair was leaning in the doorway when he pulled the T-shirt on over his head.

“Anything you can’t stand on a pizza?” he asked amiably. “Or something that you just can’t do without?”

“I’m okay with anything but mushrooms,” Anders said as he stood.

“That’s my favorite though,” Alistair pouted.

“They grow on dead things,” Anders said disgustedly wrinkling his nose.

Alistair smiled and shrugged. “I try not to think about that.” His eyes dropped briefly when Anders pushed his pants down and stepped out of them. “Coffee’s ready. Cream and sugar right?”

Anders nodded and Alistair turned, focused on his phone. He pulled his skirt up and stepped out into the living room. Alistair was in the kitchen talking to whoever was on the other end of the line. He turned after a moment with a steaming mug of coffee in one hand, his eyes once more dipping to Anders’ lower half. A grin surfaced momentarily as he carefully walked towards him with the cup held out. Anders met him half way and gratefully took the coffee, mouthing thank you before sipping.

“All right,” said Alistair nodding. “About how long… great. Thanks.” His phone went on the table and he smiled. “Diner will arrive in about forty-five minutes.”

He took another sip and set the cup on the table. Anders held his arms out to the side and smirked. “Better?”

“I didn’t say pants were bad,” Alistair said carefully. “Just different. I… do sort of like the skirts more though.”

“Neither of you ever really mentioned it,” Anders said. “That’s… pretty rare.”

“Whatever’s comfortable right?” said Alistair with a shrug. “Do you remember all of it? They’re clearer than any other dream I’ve had but… I can’t remember all of them.”

“I do.” Anders took a shuddering breath and dropped his gaze to the floor. “It’s a mixed blessing.”

“Shit.” Alistair stepped closer and cautiously wrapped his arms around Anders. “It’s all right. You don’t have to answer my ridiculous questions…”

“That’s not it,” Anders interrupted. He wrapped his arms around Alistair and rested his head on his shoulder. “For months I’ve been dreaming of the same two men. Slowly falling for them but… not knowing if they even remember me never mind have feelings for me. The last weeks have been… awful and wonderful. Trying desperately not to tip our hand and give you enough clues to… lead you to me. The night Cullen told me you were looking for me I couldn’t go back to sleep. I was… just so happy. You knew me.”

“Cullen did most of the work,” Alistair said rubbing his back. “I sat at home wondering if I needed to be locked in a rubber room. I… sort of understand. That morning in the gym… I was just so… relieved.”

“I’ll bet you didn’t burst into tears,” said Anders pulling away and attempting a smile.

“Well no. I kind of wanted to though. Does that count?”

Anders’ smile turned genuine rather than forced and he nodded. “Yes. It definitely counts. I’m sorry for putting you through that.”

“Why are you apologizing? The demon is mucking with your life too.”

“She showed up in a moment of weakness and marked me so that she could slip past my defenses. I didn’t knowingly help her but this whole mess is partly my fault. If I weren’t such a flirt…”

“If you’re going to do that you might as well blame me and Cullen too. We didn’t have to respond and fall into bed with you. Maybe that’s why she chose three guys. We’re notorious for thinking with the wrong head.”

“I’m sure there was a little more to it than that,” Anders said with a laugh. He took his coffee and pulled Alistair to the couch. “I’m fairly certain both you and Cullen interacted with the spirit before she started putting our dreams together. Before she got greedy and only started caring about the energy we created for her.”

“What energy?”

“Sex. The last time I actually saw her she told me that she ate the energy created when two people fuck. Whatever energy we stirred up must have been super tasty.”

“That’s… weird. It does explain why my dreams became so… erotic. The mark you talked about earlier. Is it a little pink heart?”

Anders nodded and leaned over. “It’s on my lower back. Below my waistline.”

He felt Alistair gently pulling at his skirt and his underwear. “It looks just like the ones on me and Cullen. Good thing Cullen’s is so visible.”

His clothing was righted but Anders remained leaned over on the couch. One of his hands had drifted to his hip and the other was smoothing down his T-shirt. “Where is it?”

“His is here.” A spot just above his right shoulder blade was rubbed. “I had no idea Cullen and I went to the same gym. Our schedules are so different. I’m not sure why he was there so early. I noticed the heart and started to ask him about it. He turned around so fast… he recognized my voice.”

“And where did she mark you?” Anders asked looking over his shoulder.

“I’ll show you later,” he replied.

“Why later?”

“Because I don’t fancy answering the door with nothing on but my shirt,” said Alistair offering his hand. “Don’t want to frighten the poor delivery guy.”

“Now I’m really curious,” said Anders letting Alistair pull him upright.

“It’s here,” Alistair said rubbing the inside of his left thigh high up where his legs forked.

“Maker I’m terrible,” Anders muttered leaning against him surprised at the sudden amount of lust coursing through him.

“Can’t say I’m any better,” Alistair chuckled threading their fingers together. “I’ve been trying to keep my brain out of my pants since you dropped yours in the bedroom.”

“You’d think we wouldn’t be so eager,” said Anders. “We fuck each other nearly every night after all.”

“It’s different,” said Alistair softly. “You don’t feel rushed. There isn’t that… need… to penetrate. We’ve sat on the couch, content with kissing and jerking each other off. The best part… he’s still there when I open my eyes.”

“I can’t wait to just curl up between you,” Anders murmured squeezing his hand. “I haven’t wanted anyone just sleeping in my bed since Karl passed.”

“He meant a lot to you didn’t he.”

“Karl… was everything. My heart was shattered when he died. I didn’t think I’d ever love anyone again.” Anders smiled and kissed Alistair’s cheek before settling in against him. “Here I am though. Not one but two people… I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to be wrong before.”

Alistair kissed the top of his head and a comfortable silence fell.


	15. The Big Plan

Cullen found them on the couch when he got off of work. He was a little surprised to find them engrossed in a movie rather than on the bed. Both of them greeted him with smiles and an invitation to join them. After taking off his uniform he put on a pair of pajama pants and did just that. Anders patted the space next to him and Cullen sat close, glad Anders was calmer than he had been at the mall.

They hadn’t discussed what to do after they had found him. Even though very few words had been exchanged there seemed to be a consensus to stay awake for as long as possible. Alistair kept their coffee cups full through the rest of the movie they’d been watching and through the next. At around three in the morning they were still wide awake. Cullen shut the TV off and turned on the couch to see them better.

“What do we do now?” he asked. “I haven’t given much thought to how we’re going to free ourselves.”

“We have to confront her,” Anders said stretching his legs out beneath the coffee table. “It would be best to do it together, all three of us.”

“So the next time we all get pulled into the same dream?” Alistair said.

“Which could be next month,” Cullen said distastefully. “I dislike the thought of this continuing at all.”

“She’s underestimated both of you,” said Anders taking one of their hands in his. “I doubt she figured a couple of mundane humans would remember her meddling let alone do something about it. That’s why she’s been so careful not to give me any information that might lead me to either of you.”

“How do we do it?” Alistair asked.

“Force her to show herself then destroy her,” Anders said. “At one point it might have been possible to make her understand but she’s too far gone. I won’t risk her putting anyone else through this.”

“Make her understand?” said Cullen frowning in confusion. “Granted my knowledge is limited, but I thought only a demon would be so meddlesome and cruel.”

“That’s probably what she is now,” Anders sighed. “I’m not really certain she was a spirit to begin with. There’s still so much we don’t know about the Fade and its inhabitants but we know a lot more today than in the dark ages when mages were arbitrarily locked up. The distinction between spirit and demon isn’t always clear. She told me that she just wanted to soothe dreamers so she’d have more food choices. At some point it spiraled and now she just wants us.”

“That’s what you meant earlier,” said Alistair slowly. “About there being more to it than a simple case of men are always horny. How did we attract her in the first place?”

“I couldn’t say with you two but… the first time I saw her was the night of my wedding anniversary,” Anders said softly. “It’s always a difficult day but… we were called out to a roll over. Karl was crushed in a multiple vehicle accident and… I was in the second ambulance on scene.”

Cullen squeezed his hand and Alistair murmured, “I’m sorry.”

He leaned over and kissed Alistair’s cheek then shifted towards Cullen and kissed his cheek as well. “I’ll be fine.” Anders took a deep breath and continued. “That’s how she marked me. I can exert a small amount of control over my dreams but not enough to stop that nightmare. One moment of weakness. In a way I was lucky.”

“And she probably came across Alistair and I in a similar moment,” said Cullen after a bit of thought. “I’ve learned some of the techniques mages are taught to guard their dreams. It doesn’t always work however. I still had frequent nightmares. There haven’t been any lately though.”

“Her influence,” said Anders. “She’s marked you as hers and she’s probably powerful enough now, after gorging night after night, the demons who plant those nightmares won’t come near.”

“I think I might enjoy a good old fashioned nightmare,” Alistair said ruefully. “You know, showing up to work with no pants on or falling off a cliff. It’d be a refreshing change.”

“I can’t agree with you but I fully understand the sentiment,” Cullen said. “How do we actually destroy her assuming you can convince Alistair and I that we’re actually dreaming?”

“How’s your aim?” said Anders with a smirk.

“I haven’t been to a firing range since I moved to Denerim,” said Cullen arching an eyebrow. “I’ve been preoccupied with the dreams and searching for you two.”

“Might be a good idea to find one,” Anders said turning to Alistair. “Do you have any weapons training at all?”

“Not unless you count tire irons,” he replied. “I learned how to beat the snot out of bullies I couldn’t talk down pretty early though.”

“I’m not sure getting that close is a fantastic idea,” said Anders with a deep frown. “She can change her form. She turned into a Qunari with the biggest cock I’ve ever seen to keep me off balance. I wouldn’t want to get hit by that.”

“You didn’t…” Alistair said slowly.

“It wasn’t the smartest thing I’ve ever done,” Anders said with a nod. “I’d be willing to bet both of you screwed her at some point before she became obsessed with getting us to screw each other.”

Alistair’s eyes grew wide and he shook his head. “Nope. Don’t want to get close to that.”

That he might have actually had sex with this demon in his dreams bothered him as much as it seemed to bother Alistair. Since there was nothing he could do about it now he pushed it to the back of his mind. “I can take you take you to the firing range. See if you’re any good with a rifle. What about you Anders?”

“I always have my weapon,” he replied softly.

Anders let go of Cullen’s hand and held it out in front of him. A small ball of fire appeared above it and Cullen watched speechless until he closed his hand into a fist. He reached for Anders’ hand and threaded their fingers together. His grateful smile brought one to Cullen’s lips as well.

“Wow,” Alistair said. “I had no idea you could do things like that.”

“I chose to save people. I could just as easily have chosen a different profession. Some mages are talented in one specific type of magic but I have a range of strengths.”

“Now that we’ve settled that, I believe it’s time to retire,” Cullen said after a moment.

“Could we… fool around a bit?” Anders asked hopefully. “I know we’ve really only just met and it’s been a long day but…”

Cullen shared a look with Alistair. They hadn’t discussed this either but Alistair was grinning and nodding eagerly. He scooted a little closer, disentangled their hands and gently pulled the mage to him with a hand at the back of his neck. Anders made a surprised noise but quickly relaxed, responding eagerly to his kiss, mouth open in invitation. Alistair had also scooted closer. He worked his hands underneath Anders’ shirt, sliding up his back.

“Yes,” Alistair said softly close to his ear. “To the bedroom?”

“To the bedroom,” said Cullen.

“Can I make a request?” Anders asked as Cullen pulled him to his feet.

“Of course,” Cullen replied with a smile.

Anders put an arm around each of their waists and pulled them closer. “I want both of you. At the same time. It’s intense and difficult waking up afterwards without you. I want to close my eyes and know you’ll still be there.”

“We will be,” Cullen said gently.

He led the way into his bedroom and they slowly undressed Anders. After so many months they knew exactly how to pull him apart. Cullen stood behind and pulled off his shirt, running his hands over every inch of skin on his torso and kissing his neck and shoulders. Alistair knelt in front of him and pulled down his skirt, rubbing his thighs, the hollow of his knees and kissing his inner thigh before slowly peeling down his underwear. Cullen rubbed his nipples and caressed his ass while Alistair sucked on his balls. Anders pushed back against Cullen then forward, panting and moaning with one hand on the top of Alistair’s head and the other reaching back for Cullen.

After several minutes Alistair stood and pulled back the covers. He got two condoms from the nightstand and the tube of lubricant before sitting at the end and laying back. With Anders positioned on his hands and knees over Alistair Cullen began the process of stretching him open enough to take both of them. Alistair kissed and soothed, ran his hands along Anders’ sides while he gasped and moaned.

He sunk quickly down on Alistair when Cullen was satisfied. Anders curled against Alistair’s chest while he positioned himself and slowly pushed into him as well. With both of them seated tightly within, Cullen rubbed his back and Alistair ran his fingers through his hair while they waited. Anders’ breath came in quick little pants as he adjusted. The room was filled with their moans when Anders began moving. Cullen held his hips, helping to steady his jerky rhythm while Alistair held his sides. Their movements were practiced and perfectly in tune, honed by dreams.

One by one they each found release. Anders was near incoherent, weakly trying to help them get him to the middle of the bed. They finally fell asleep at almost five in the morning, pressed tightly together on Cullen’s almost too small bed. Their limbs were entwined, the covers pulled up around them and they slept peacefully and uninterrupted.

*

She circled their dreams, curiously but cautiously. Having spent quite some time searching, she’d fed off of the dreams of others. It hadn’t been as sweet. It wasn’t as rich or robust. She longed for what they gave off but there was no point now that she was already full. Instead she circled and watched, wondering why all three of them were clustered together.


	16. A Monkey Wrench

It was after noon before any of them woke. Anders was vaguely aware of Cullen behind him, shifting carefully and kissing his shoulder before his weight disappeared. He rolled to his back and sprawled out, feeling his sore ass along with dozens of little aches from being squashed together as they slept.

“One of us needs to get a bigger bed,” Alistair groaned softly as he rolled to his stomach.

Anders chuckled and reached for him. “Where would we put it?”

“Good point,” he murmured. “That’s something we should discuss anyway. I’m not really looking forward to going home. Being alone.”

“Neither am I,” Anders said softly.

Alistair scooted over and slung an arm over him, head resting on his chest. “Cullen has to work tonight but we could make some decisions before he leaves.”

Anders ran his fingers through Alistair’s short hair and smiled up at the ceiling. He was still amazed that that these two men knew him, that they returned his affection. They had met only yesterday but shared something no one would believe. Each of them knew things about the other through their shared dreams. He wanted them always near as they filled in the gaps. Going back to his big empty house alone would be hard.

“What’s your last name Alistair?” Anders asked after a few quiet minutes.

“You first,” he replied. “Would have made finding you easier. Could have looked in the phone book.”

“Thekla,” said Anders with a little smile. “The number is unlisted though.”

“Oh. Well. I guess it wouldn’t have been any easier.” Alistair sighed heavily and sat up. “Theirin.” Anders’ eyes grew wide and his eyebrows rose. Alistair sighed again and continued before he could say anything. “Yes my father was Maric Theirin, no I don’t know where he is. Cailan technically is my half-brother but he doesn’t know I exist. I’m the unwanted result of an affair, given away as a baby and later as a child because his wife’s brother’s family didn’t want me either.”

“No wonder you always introduce yourself as just Alistair,” Anders said sitting up.

“People ignore me and focus on a family I’ve never been a part of,” he said sullenly. “It’s… annoying.”

“I understand,” said Anders gently. He took Alistair’s hand and ran his thumb across the back. “I’m an orphan too remember. I was disowned when my magic manifested. My family isn’t famous but I hated my last name the same way you do. When I married Karl I took his last name to rid myself of it.”

“I don’t hate it exactly,” Alistair said thoughtfully. “I hate the way people react to it. Like… I’m supposed to have inside information or something. He didn’t want me. I know as much about the man as any other person. Well. I do know he didn’t know how to keep it in his pants but most people don’t want to believe that.”

Anders leaned forward and kissed him, smiling. “I promise I won’t tell anyone my boyfriend is Maric Theirin’s illicit love child. I will brag about how kind and caring he is however.”

“I can live with that,” he said grinning.

Alistair leaned forward and kissed him on the lips, quick and chaste. Cullen entered as he was pulling away with a white towel wrapped around his waist.

“My turn!” Alistair exclaimed.

He crawled off of the bed and paused long enough to give Cullen a brief peck on the lips as well. Anders scooted to the edge and watched Alistair leave the room, noticing that Cullen was watching as well. Grinning he stood and held his hand out when Cullen turned back towards him.

“Anderson Thekla,” he said formally. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Cullen Rutherford,” said Cullen taking his hand. Instead of shaking he kissed the back and smirked before continuing. “And the pleasure is all mine.”

Anders smiled broadly and said, “You’re quite charming.”

“Sometimes,” he replied with a smirk. “Have you asked Alistair?”

“I did,” said Anders his smile fading a little. “Some of his idiosyncrasies make a lot more sense.”

“None of us have had an easy life,” Cullen said sitting on the bed, pulling Anders down with him and twining their fingers together. “Working for an ambulance service I’m sure you understand why I can’t do it anymore.”

“Yes,” Anders said squeezing his hand and leaning against him. “I’ve seen some pretty horrific things but at least I have a chance to save them.” Silence stretched out for a few minutes and Anders shook his head. “That’s enough gloom. Alistair and I wanted to discuss possible future sleeping arrangements.”

“A larger bed,” Cullen said immediately.

“We agree but where to put it.”

“Ah. The biggest residence would be a likely choice.”

“Hold that thought until I shower.” Anders grinned and kissed his cheek. “All three of us should agree.”

Cullen squeezed his hand and nodded. Anders didn’t have to wait long for his turn to clean up. Alistair returned and Cullen was half dressed. Lunch was well on the way when he joined them in the kitchen. They sat around the table eating soup and crackers while they discussed the future of their living arrangements. While nothing permanent was decided they made plans to relocate to Anders’ house. He had an empty spare room and a couple of air mattresses that could be pushed together.

Phone numbers were exchanged and Cullen packed a bag for them to take with. After he left for work Anders and Alistair stopped by his apartment, where Anders wandered curiously while he also grabbed a few things. When they arrived Anders dug through his closets for blankets and the air mattresses. With their bed made and bags stored they made supper. The rest of the night was spent in the living room talking while the TV ran its endless programs. All of them spoke for a while longer after Cullen arrived but soon fell asleep.

*

They were clustered together again. She thought two of them in close proximity occasionally had been odd but ultimately unimportant. Twice now all three of their dreams were too close. Something had changed. She pulled them all to her place and stood in a corner, watching.

*

Anders sat up in the pastel room. Cullen and Alistair were to either side of him and as usual they were all naked. The sweet scent that permeated the air every other time he’d been in this room was conspicuously absent however. He scrambled to his feet and looked around for any indication of the demon while his partners were looking mostly confused.

“Where are we?” Cullen asked kneeling to run a hand over the strange fluffy floor. “What is this?”

“Why aren’t we wearing anything?” Alistair asked looking down at himself. He shrugged and took a step towards one wall. “Where is the light coming from?”

“We’re dreaming,” Anders said grimly. “Something’s not right though.”

“Dreaming,” said Cullen softly. His face scrunched up for a moment then he stood, his expression now one of anger. “The demon.”

“There’s no smell,” Alistair said slowly. “There was always a smell. Did we tip her off somehow?”

“Show yourself demon,” Cullen hollered as he turned a slow circle. “We will no longer play your games!”

The room wavered and shimmered. Anders closed his eyes against the nauseating sight. When he opened them again he found himself in a small sky blue room. Cullen and Alistair were gone.

“Where are you?” he yelled furiously.

Disembodied laughter floated through the room. “They will not be able to resist without your influence mage. A pity you will have to be put down.”

“You’re welcome to try,” Anders called out.

“I won’t have to do a thing. I have no interest your world mage. They will take care of you at my command. Then I will be between them. Taking their cocks in your place.”

“They won’t succumb. Mundane people are more intelligent than you give them credit for.”

“We will see mage. We will see.”

More laughter faded away and Anders stood in the middle of the room, seething with anger. In a blink he was clothed in his uniform, his pockets full of the tools of his trade. He gathered his mana and sent a fireball at the wall in front of him. It exploded in a shower of sparks, dust and chunks of sky blue material. Anders stalked through the hole he’d made and found himself in a labyrinth.

“I’ll see you ashes before morning bitch,” he hissed quietly.


	17. Two Free

The siren blared as they raced down the street. Words interspersed with static burst from the radio. Cullen was in the passenger seat, his partner Samson at the wheel. They were heading for the Kirkwall Market District where a gunman was threatening innocent shoppers unlucky enough to wander in his path. He should have been focused, ready to do what was necessary to protect the citizens of Kirkwall. He wasn’t. His nerves were ragged and his instincts were screaming at him that this was wrong.

Cullen had long ago learned to trust his instincts but there was nothing obviously wrong. The city flying by past the window seemed the same as he’d left it. Samson was the same scruffy sardonic man he remembered. There was nothing out of place about the vehicle or his uniform. Everything was perfect but his instincts insisted that it was perfectly wrong. His mind raced trying to figure out why he was so tense and why he felt he shouldn’t be in Kirkwall doing his job.

“Almost there,” Samson reported grimly from the driver’s seat.

He glanced over at him then out his window. The distinct warble of an ambulance had been added to the wailing of the cruiser.

“That’s it,” he murmured. “This isn’t my job. I live in Denerim.”

The demon was controlling his dreams. Cullen had no idea why she’d chosen this particular scenario and ultimately it didn’t matter. She had to be somewhere and he would play along until he found her. He touched the butt of what he knew to be a standard issue handgun at his hip. Cullen sat back in the seat, focused and calm. Hopefully she had given him the means to end her meddling. His only worry now was recognizing her.

Samson slowed to a stop on the street adjoining a historic square that held many tents and tables filled with vegetables of every sort. A clear spot in the crowd drew him to the gunman. Cullen climbed out and hurried over. The crowd around him ceased to matter when he got a good look at the woman he held. Black hair, red lips and long pink fingernails stirred memories. If he were close enough he was positive her eyes would be gray. Her clothing changed to dark skinny jeans and a voluminous pastel purple sweater with a small strip of belly showing.

“Oh please,” Cullen said contemptuously.

He stopped just inside the ring of people, his line of sight clear. Samson was yelling next to him as the woman whimpered in terror. Cullen pulled the snap on his holster and drew his weapon. He chambered the first round and cocked the hammer as he leveled it, both hands on the grip as he’d been taught years ago.

“You aren’t the hostage,” he said quietly and calmly, positive she could hear him.

Cullen squeezed the trigger, felt the kick that pulled the barrel up, heard the report echoing from the buildings around him and saw a hole open up in her chest. He ignored the panic erupting around him and leveled the barrel at her again. Within moments he emptied the clip into her torso watching her jerk wide eyed with surprise every time a slug hit, noticing that everything else around him had slowed to a stop. The silence was deafening after the gunshots and he clearly heard her labored breathing. Cullen pushed the release and let the empty clip fall.

“I am,” said Cullen as he reached for the spare clip on his belt. He slammed it home and chambered the first round, cocking the hammer as he leveled it. “You _will_ release me.”

She screamed, whether in frustration or terror he couldn’t tell, as he squeezed the trigger again. The woman disappeared before the slug could tear another hole through her. Sharp intense pain in his shoulder pulled a gasp from him and he squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again his shoulder throbbed and the room was dark. Cullen rolled off of the air mattresses, gasping again as air hit his shoulder and burning was added to the throbbing. He staggered to his feet and lurched towards the door. Cullen flipped the light on and turned, squinting in the sudden brightness. Alistair and Anders were both still asleep, their eyes moving rapidly beneath their closed lids.

*

Alistair couldn’t believe the demon’s audacity. After the room had begun rippling he closed his eyes. When he opened them again he found himself in a truly enormous bed. The sheets were pure satin, an obscene bright yellow, and the canopy overhead looked like silk. It softened the weird light even though it was just as eye watering in color as the sheets were. He was still completely naked. The dozen or so women around him were also naked.

He’d watched the depravity around him for a moment, completely shocked. They were involved in what appeared to be every sexual act one woman could possibly do with another. Even though he’d been a little more interested in cocks lately he couldn’t say he was completely uninterested. His cock stiffened rather quickly and a couple of the women turned to him, looking a little too much like they wanted eat him whole. Alistair had grabbed the sheet underneath him and scrambled off the bed, pulling many of the women to the floor.

Now that he was out of that room and into a labyrinth he paused to wrap the sheet around his waist and ended up tying the extra over his shoulder so he wouldn’t trip on the excess. He muttered to himself as he started down the corridor and was soon completely lost. After dozens of twists and turns in the pastel blue corridor he came across another door. This one was a horrid shade of lavender. The door he’d left had been a pale green so he wasn’t worried about stepping into the den of iniquity he’d fled.

The sight that greeted him could have been out of a movie if it hadn’t been completely frozen with the exception of the two people at the center. Cullen’s voice rang out clear and calm but furious, you _will_ release me. The woman across an empty stretch of pavement screamed, he heard the loud boom of the handgun in Cullen’s hands, watched fire lick from the muzzle and the woman was suddenly gone. Cullen grunted in pain then disappeared as well.

“I really hope he just woke up,” Alistair said frowning as he turned back towards the corridor.

Instead of the blue maze he found himself in the pale green room he’d left. The women were all standing in front of the bed, licking their lips, tweaking their nipples, hands sliding over full breasts or down flat stomachs. A few even had fingers buried between their legs. All of them were looking at him, adoring and hungry but not the good sort of hungry. Alistair backed away growling in irritation, glad that his sheet toga was still intact.

“Just stop it!” he yelled. “There is nothing even remotely plausible about this!”

“Stubborn foolish mortal,” the demon hissed. She appeared off to one side, wearing the dark jeans and purple shirt he’d seen on the woman Cullen had been shooting at. “Your every fantasy is at my fingertips and still you resist me.”

“Looks like I’m not the only one,” Alistair said mildly turning to her. Her shirt was blackening with ichor and was nearly shredded in some spots. “Cullen not react like a good little automaton either?”

“I can be anyone you wish,” she snarled. “You wish to fuck the mage?” Her form shifted and Anders stood in front of him, hunched over with his arms across his stomach. “Maybe you’d like to take the cop.” She shifted again and Cullen stood before him, his face twisted into an ugly sneer. “Pound his ass like he does yours.”

Infuriated Alistair stepped quickly forward and punched the visage of Cullen in the sternum, putting every bit of force he could behind it without drawing back so she could dodge. The demon snarled, her form rippling again back to the black haired gray eyed human. Alistair tried for a left hook but she caught his fists.

“You would hit a woman?” she said struggling to hold him in place.

“You’re not a woman,” Alistair spat. “You’re not even human.”

He lashed out at her knee with his foot knowing he would go down. Alistair heard the sickening crunch as she pushed him over. She screamed in pain, raking her claws across his stomach before crumpling to the floor. He grunted in pain, both from the scratches and slamming his head onto the floor but scrambled quickly to his feet. The demon was crawling away from him, watching wary and furious.

“You should be grateful,” she snapped. “Without me you never would have known them. You’d be…”

“Grateful?” Alistair interrupted in shock. “I should be grateful?” He clenched his hands into fists and willed his heavy work boots onto his feet. “I should be grateful for your interference? Making me question my sanity? Long nights of lying awake because I kept dreaming of fucking two guys I don’t even know?”

Alistair stalked forward and aimed his foot at her face. The toe of his boot connected perfectly with her nose and ichor sprayed as she screamed again.

“Fuck you!” Alistair yelled furiously drawing back to kick her again. “Get out of my head!”

Suddenly the demon was gone and Alistair lost his footing. Intense pain blossomed on his thigh as he fell backwards. He cried out and jerked awake, groaning at the pain he still felt. Cullen appeared over him, brushing anxiously at his cheeks.

“Are you all right?” Cullen asked.

“No,” Alistair groaned. He flipped the blankets off and rose up on one elbow. Five perfect lines were grooved into his stomach, each one welling and dripping blood. “Fuck that hurts.”

Cullen turned and grabbed something from beside him. Alistair sunk back down and tried not to whine as he gently mopped up the blood with a towel, eventually holding it to his stomach.

“It doesn’t look too bad,” Cullen said evenly. “How did this happen?”

“I smashed her knee with my foot. She got mad.”

“Maker’s Breath,” said Cullen sounding slightly exasperated. “You couldn’t have conjured up a lead pipe or something?”

“Didn’t think of that. I was slightly upset. It could have been worse. You’d already gotten her pretty good.”

“Hopefully Anders won’t have any trouble finishing her off. Does the mark on your thigh burn?”

“Yes. My stomach hurts worse though.”

“Good. She’s let the both of us go at least.”

Alistair turned his head to see Anders. He was still asleep, his eyes moving rapidly, his hands twitching.


	18. An Unexpected End

Anders wasn’t sure how long he’d been wandering through the maze of corridors. His temper had cooled somewhat but he was still furious. He wasn’t completely positive but he thought both Cullen and Alistair were safe. Twice some of the walls had disappeared. It told him they had diminished her power, most likely by injury. She couldn’t maintain her complex maze if she had to focus on any damage they’d done to her. There was no guarantee that either of them had escaped unscathed however.

In his search he’d come across several doors. If they wouldn’t open he forced them open. So far each one had been an empty room, some comparable to the room she’d left him in and others much larger. The door he stood in front of now was a steel gray color. Anders found this one either locked or stuck so he stepped back and focused his magic. The door popped open and he cautiously stepped inside. Unlike the other rooms this one wasn’t empty.

It wasn’t as well lit as the others and all he could make out were odd shapes. Anders looked around warily as he created a small fireball so that he could see a little better. The nearest lump was a general sofa shape with a dust cloth covering it. He slowly walked past and saw a bookcase standing in the middle of the room, completely empty and covered in a thick layer of dust. As he slowly made his way through he saw several common household pieces of furniture, some covered and others covered in grime.

Pure luck led him to the bed. It wasn’t as neglected as everything else he’d seen but it was a horrible sight to behold. The dark pink blanket was slowly being overtaken by a thick black fluid. The demon was curled up in the middle, all her glamour’s gone. Anders wasn’t surprised to see that she was a demon of desire. The pool of ichor had soaked into the blankets around her. The mattress underneath where the demon was curled up was likely saturated as well. It tugged at the doctor he’d chosen to be but Anders stayed where he was.

“I told you they wouldn’t fall for your tricks,” Anders said softly looking over the injuries he could see. Her nose was shattered and there were gunshot wounds in the upper part of her chest. As she rose to a sitting position he could see several more clustered around where her heart would have been. She shifted backwards a little and he saw that one of her knees was bent at an awkward angle.

“Smart little mage,” she mocked. “Would you like a medal? But no. I see you take no pleasure in what your lovers have done to me.”

“You brought this on yourself,” Anders said firmly. “When you chose to focus on us.”

“I gave you what you desired and asked little in return,” she said scooting back to rest on the headboard. “The innocent little boy. His greatest desire was acceptance. I gave him you and the cop. In return he ruined my face and my knee. The cop haunted by too many memories. His greatest desire was to forget. I gave him something else to focus on. You and the innocent little boy. He repaid me with pain. And you. You wanted that which was taken from you. I gave you twice that. How will you repay me mage?”

“You gave us fear and uncertainty. You gave me more heartache not less. Night after night. The same two people. Slowly falling in love with a fantasy. You gave me nothing. Cullen knew we were real. He knew we were in as much danger as he was. He spent months searching for me and Alistair. If anyone gave us our desires it was him. Not you.”

“He would never have known you without me. You still have me to thank.” The demon leaned forward smirking as she gestured at him. “Heal me and I will free you mage. You and you’re lovers will never see me again.”

Anders shook his head and took another step back. “No. You’ll find some other poor souls to torment. I can’t allow that.”

He sent the fireball at her and dove behind a bureau. Even though Cullen had wounded her badly and Alistair had crippled her she was far from helpless. She screeched in anger and the bureau disintegrated in a shower of splinters. Anders grimaced and scrambled forward. Another pulse of energy just missed him. He crawled behind another dusty piece of furniture and swore when a blast pushed it towards him, filling the air with dust.

Still coughing Anders crawled to a large desk covered in a drop cloth. Hoping she hadn’t tracked him this time he gathered flames between his hands. He popped up and flung it at the bed. Despite her injuries she had managed to crawl off. The ichor soaked bedding didn’t catch fire but the headboard had. Anders squatted down and thought. It wouldn’t be hard to follow the trail she’d no doubt left. That would present the danger of being ambushed in the maze of clutter. He had no doubts that she would take advantage of any opportunity he gave her. The burning headboard gave him an idea.

With his shirt over his nose Anders cautiously crept forward. After determining which direction she’d gone in he started lobbing fireballs at anything that would burn. The toxic smoke would affect him before it did her but flames were indiscriminant. Flushing her out was the safest way to find her. As much as he would have preferred a direct confrontation he wasn’t about to risk possession.

The room was now well lit as flames licked at the ceiling. Anders backed away to the outer wall, his arm now across his nose and mouth as well as his shirt. He shadowed the wall until he found the door. Hoping it was the only exit Anders waited down the corridor, looking over his shoulder constantly just in case it wasn’t.

“Nice try mage,” her disembodied voice said from all around him. “But I am not helpless. I will release you like I have your lovers. Goodbye mage. We will not see each other again.”

Sharp pain blossomed in the small of his back as he was ejected from her little corner of the Fade. Anders woke with a frustrated yell. Next to him Alistair jerked in surprise then groaned. He sat up and saw that Cullen was in the process of taping a large bandage to Alistair’s stomach.

“Are you all right?” Cullen asked pausing with a length of tape between his hands.

“Mostly,” Anders replied scooting away and leaning closer to Alistair. He pulled up the loose corner and swore. “I’m sorry. I’ve reopened it. What happened?”

“She scratched me,” Alistair said. “What do you mean mostly? Are you hurt?”

“A few minor scratches along my right side,” he replied distractedly. Anders held his hands over Alistair’s stomach pulling the last of his depleted mana to heal him. He managed to stop the bleeding again but accomplished little towards actually healing the scratches. “I’m sorry. That’s all I can do.”

“I’m fine,” said Alistair gently taking one of his hands. “It’s not life threatening.”

Anders nodded and squeezed his hand. He didn’t let go as they watched Cullen finish taping the gauze. When that was done he insisted on seeing Anders. There were no actual splinters but several shallow scratches where they’d pierced his skin. When he was satisfied Anders was in no danger he turned his attention to the heart on his lower back.

“It looks like ours,” Cullen said turning so that Anders could see his shoulder.

Where the heart had been the skin was red and a little raw.

“It’s like she just scraped a layer of skin off,” Anders said frowning. “We need to clean these and keep an eye on them. They might scar.”

“What happened with the demon Anders?” Cullen asked turning to face him.

“I tried,” Anders sighed. “She… got away and threw me out.”

“Damn,” muttered Cullen his gaze dropping to his lap.

“There’s nothing we can do is there?” Alistair asked sadly.

“No,” Anders said shaking his head. “She’ll wait for a while. Heal and build up strength. Then start over. I don’t think any of us will ever see her again. We hurt her too badly.”

“Let’s go to the kitchen,” said Alistair after a moment. “Have some hot chocolate or something. I don’t feel much like sleeping.”

It would be the next night before any of them actually slept. They spent the rest of the night talking quietly around the kitchen table. Work was difficult for each of them but they managed. Alistair picked up Anders when his shift was over, cheerfully volunteering to have a look at Anders’ car in the parking lot. After making copies of his house keys and delivering a set to Cullen, they spent the rest of the evening at Anders’ house. They eventually fell asleep on the makeshift bed in the spare room, spooned together with Anders behind. Cullen quietly joined them when he arrived and they slept undisturbed until morning.


	19. Four Months Later...

Anders straddled Alistair worrying his bottom lip between his teeth as he sunk slowly onto his cock. Alistair moaned happily running his hands up and down Anders’ bare thighs. He leaned over, his stiff cock between them, and gripped the pillow to either side of Alistair’s head. Anders smiled when his hands came to rest on his hips, pulling gently. Needing no further encouragement Anders began rocking, leaning down further to meet open lips.

Their tongues danced and Alistair’s hands wandered, rubbing skin and pressing on sensitive spots. Anders rocked, loving the stretch of his cock, the steady slide and the bursts of pleasure when it grazed his prostate. Lazy afternoon sex with either of his lovers was something he always looked forward to. Their schedules were still very different. Making time for intimacy had been challenging before Cullen and Alistair had moved in. It was still somewhat challenging for all three of them to be together afterwards but easier for any pair that happened to be home.

He pulled Alistair’s bottom lip out with his teeth as he slowly straightened, his hands running down his chest. Anders paused at his nipples, smirking as he pinched the hard pebbles. Alistair’s grip on his hips tightened and he arched his back a little as he moaned softly. He worried them between his fingers, still rocking his hips, watching Alistair squirm happily. When Anders continued down his chest he sighed and smiled. Anders paused at the scars across his stomach, slowing the roll of his hips.

They had all had to come to terms with the dreams and the demon that had brought them together. The two months they’d spent living in their separate dwellings had been to make sure their feelings were genuine. Constant phone calls and spending any spare moment together had proved that what had begun in the dreams had become real. The demon was a different matter. For Anders the most difficult thing was admitting that she was right. Without the dreams, without her interference he never would have met either of them. While he still wasn’t happy with her escape admitting this lessened his guilt for not being able to destroy her.

The scars left by her claws were a sore spot for Anders. Alistair had shrugged it off but Anders considered it another failure. There was nothing he could have done to prevent the heart shaped scars but if he hadn’t used most of his mana in his failed attack Alistair wouldn’t have that constant reminder. It was a small comfort that the scars didn’t actually bother Alistair but seeing them sometimes brought up the guilt he still carried. Alistair had become adept at distracting him from them however.

Alistair brought his momentarily distracted attention back to task with a firm grip on his cock. Anders groaned and moved his hands back up to Alistair’s chest. He held his hand still and let Anders’ cock slide back and forth in his grip with every rock of his hips. Anders was soon panting and he sped his pace. Neither of them heard the faint sound of the door on the floor below but they both heard Cullen call out.

“In the bedroom,” Anders hollered back. All motion had stopped and Anders grinned down at Alistair. “Your ass or my mouth?”

“Your mouth,” he replied immediately. “Quicker.”

Anders swung off when Alistair let him go. He crawled to the edge of the king sized bed and wiggled his ass as he looked over his shoulder. Alistair was on his knees between his legs, one hand reaching for his hip and the other guiding his cock. His hand arrived first followed quickly by his cock. Anders looked towards the bedroom door directly in front of him, humming as Alistair began thrusting keeping his pace slow. Cullen stopped in the open doorway, his happy smile quickly turning to a smirk.

“How did your interview go?” Anders asked his voice not quite even.

“I think I have a really good chance,” Cullen said. Anders licked his lips, moaning softly as Alistair found his prostate. He pulled up his shirt and began unbuttoning it. “She seemed pleased with my answers and my resume.”

“Let’s eat out later,” Alistair said gripping his other hip. “Not every day we’re all actually off.”

Alistair sped up as Cullen stepped forward, flipping the tails of his shirt behind him.

“Then… much later maybe… I can have… both of… you,” Anders managed.

“I would like nothing more,” Cullen said running his fingers through Anders’ hair.

He couldn’t help a smile. Having both Alistair and Cullen up his ass at the same time was a rare treat. Not only was it physically intense for Anders, it was emotionally intense for all of them. That had been the demon’s favorite thing, what they always ended up doing in the pastel colored room. It was a reminder of how they had come together and how much worse it could have turned out.

Cullen leaned over him and Alistair paused, hips pressed closely to ass, and they kissed. Anders nuzzled his crotch, mouthing his stiffening cock through his slacks. They parted and Cullen straightened, hands pulling at his zipper and the button. Alistair resumed his thrusts when Anders had Cullen’s cock in his mouth.

None of them could completely forget the dreams and their shared experiences. Perhaps that was why they argued very little. Anders didn’t know if this relationship with them would stand the test of time but he hoped with all his heart it would. The only other person he’d ever been this content with was Karl, whose ring remained on his left hand. Neither of them had ever asked him to take it off. They seemed to accept what it meant to him and he loved them all the more for it.

The future was for later however. Right now there was only Alistair behind and Cullen in front, hands at his hips and threaded through his hair. There was dinner later and being stretched to his limit later still; falling asleep between them knowing they would all still be in the same bed when they woke.

*

She had plenty of time to ponder her mistakes while she healed. Her biggest blunder was underestimating the mundanes. The mage had known her from the beginning but the other two had become suspicious at some point. Patience would be needed along with careful monitoring of their dreams. Another mistake had been pulling all three of them together. Two dreamers would be easier to manage with less shared dreams to be suspicious of. It would also be easier to insert herself into their dreams. A different form every time would raise no questions with a carefully thought out scenario.

There was also time to figure out what had worked. The three she marked were vulnerable in ways the other two weren’t. It had been an inadvertent but lucky choice. Letting them set the pace had been crucial for the sweet energy they created when they finally did couple. The mage’s forwardness had helped that along immensely. If she spent some time carefully searching it would be possible to find two compatible dreamers, one of whom that was as forward as the mage.

When she did start actively searching she avoided the area of the Fade the first three most often showed up in. Finding one of them could be disastrous for her. She had no doubts any of the three would recognize her and attack. She soon found a suitable dreamer. It was all too easy to couple with him and she’d done so more than once. Beneath the elf’s calm, confident exterior was a lifetime’s worth of abuse and a mistake that haunted him. He was a perfect candidate and she’d marked his ankle.

Searching for a suitable companion for him took time but she’d finally found one. Another elf with a lifetime’s worth of abuse. Rather than accepting his past like the Antivan had, this elf was bitter and angry. He yearned for what had been denied him over and over but was suspicious of everyone because he knew no other way. She hadn’t needed to mark him. The strange tattoos he was covered in from head to toe sang to her.

They could help each other a lot. The Tevinter would most likely try her patience but the reward would be sweet and rich.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sure you've figured out who her next 'victims' are. To answer the question I know is going to pop up, I really don't know if I'll write it. This fic has been a fun deviation from my normal uber fluff or super angsty fluff. I kinda want to continue this but I don't know if it will happen. We'll just have to see.
> 
> Thanks for reading and big thanks to everyone who left kudos and comments. =D


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